TALY’

S GREAT HORROR

EARTHQUAKE ANDT IDAL WAVETER R IBLE DEVASTAT IO N AND

H EART-R ENDING SCENES

IMMENS E LO S S O F L IFE AND HUNDRED MILL IO NS

O F PRO PE RTY DE S TRO Y ED

TH E MO ST APPAL L ING DISASTERO F MO DERN T IMES

CO N T A I N I N G

V IV ID DE S CR IPT IO NS O F T H I S O VE RW H E LMING CA L AMITY

S UDDE NN E S S O F T H E BL O W — G R E A T NUMBE R O F

V ICT IMS — F A L L O F G R E A T BU I LD ING S — T H O U

S ANDS DR IVE N FR O M T H E IR H O ME S

TH IS UNPARALL EL ED CATASTR O PH E

L EAVE S ME S S I NA AND O TH E R BEAUT IFUL

C IT IE S H EAPS O F RUINSFR O M S T O R IE S T O LD BY E Y E W IT NE S S E S

T O W H I CH I S A DDE D

G R APH IC ACCO UNT S O F T H E E RUPT I O N S O F E T NA , VE S UV IUS

A ND O T H E R V O LCAN O E S , E XPL A IN ING T H E CAUS E S

O F E AR T H Q UAKE S ,T IDA L W AVE S A ND

VO LCA N IC E RUP T I O NS

CO MPI L E D

BY JAY H ENRY MO W BRAY , Ph .D LL .D.

T h e C elebrated A uth or T raveller and L ecturer

Embellishedwith aG reat Numberof S uperb PhotographicV iewsshowing heart-rending S cenes inthis A ppalling Calamity

PR E FACE .

I S A S T E R without parallel on the blood-stained pages of

history ; almost a quarter of a million of human beingsswept into eternity in scarce more than the twinkling of an

eye ; thousands maimed and bruised and battered, bereft of homeand family and driven tothe verge of madness by their suff erings ;millions of dollars worth of property destroyed ; half a dozencities swept away in one supreme cataclysm and scores of lessertowns and villages wiped from the face of the earth .

T hat is the stupendous story of the great earthquakes andtidal waves that devastated S outhern I taly and S icily in the closingdays of 1908 .

I t is the terrible clim ax of a series of convuls ions of naturethat began six years before , when M ont Pelee with one foulbreath

,blotted out lives on M artinique.

T hen came S an F rancisco, with a property loss and sufferingheretofore unequalled .

V alparaiso and S antiago,Chile

,next were swept by th e

avenging hand of nature .

K ingston, Jamaica , was scourged till it almost ceased to exist .

F lame or tidal wave in each contributed to swell the terribletotal of destruction .

But I taly ’s devastation was far greater than any of these

,

T idal waves followed close upon the most terrific earth shocksman ever had been called upon to suffer. F lame added to thehorror and pestilence stalked over the shattered ruins and tookits added grim toll of death from the serried ranks of the mindwrecked and nerve-shattered survivors of the earlier horrors .

T he shaken area was almost as large as the S tate of Pennsylvania . T hroughout this,the most h istoric and one of the mostfertile regions of earth

,one in every two of men, women and

m

iv PR E F A CE .

children perished with in the S pace of less time than it has takento pen these lines .

S m all wonder that a horror-stricken world stood aghast atI taly ’

s agony . T he human intellect could scarcely grasp the

imm ens ity and thoroughness of the horror .

A fter the first shock came aparalyz ed lull . T hen the worldfairly leaped to the aid of the stricken nation .

In every civilized city on the globe money was poured outlike water for the succor of the survivors . Civilization ’

s debt toI taly was repaid a thousandfold .

T he dead were past even exhumation . Buried deep beneaththe debris of the homes they loved so well , their bones willcrumble to thedust of the centuries . N ature was the only gravedigger countless thousands will ever know .

M essina,R eggio and their neighboring towns may rise

,

phoenix-like,from their ashes

,but it is doubtful . Certainly cen

turies must elapse. City and population alike have paid theirtributeto nature with their lives . I t seems to-day to be a deaththat can know no resurrection .

M en are only now delving in the ruins of Pompei i andH erculaneum

,wh ich perished twenty centuries ago. T hedisaster

th at overwhelmed them was scarce more complete than I taly ’s

lates t devastation . T he toll of human life exacted was infinitelysmaller

, yet they could not survive .

T hese modern victim s of the earthquake ’s wrath outliveddamage in the past at the hands of the all-powerful forces that arebeyond and above man ’

s guidance . N ow they have suffereddestruction so utter and so com plete that any attempt to reconstruct them must be reconstruction indeed and repopulation as

well .T he vines will still grow on E tna ’s sun-kissed slopes ; wine

and olives still will pour from the Calabrian steeps . T hat is true.

And men will be found who will dare the dangers of this oftscourged land in the future as their forefathers have done in thecountless centuries of a horror-stained pas t .

But there are too few left to make more than half a doz en

PR E F A CE .

villages . T he remnants of the vas t army of workers whothronged this human bee hive will have no companion in the

shattered streets save th e wraiths of those who paid the penaltyof their temerity and their patriotism with their lives .

T he world speaks of this stupendous disaster as I taly ’s . Yet

it is A merica ’s in scarcely less a measure . H ardly a fam ily inall the stricken region but had at least one breadwinner on ourown side of the A tlantic .

S carcely a home in all A merica wh ich housed a family of

I talian parentage but mourns for loved ones lost .T here is a lesson in all things . But that lesson can convey

no rebuke to the hardy peasants who loved the land that theirforefathers loved . T hey took the well-known risk and paid thepenalty with their lives . S o be it .

But i f we of to-day , in a land blessed by nature and blossoming like the rose

,fail to read aright the ages-old story ; if we do

not realize,as never before, that there is over and above us a

power greater than our own,apower who holds the lightnings in

H is grasp and the hurricane in the hollow of H is hand,the

martyrs who perished on the S icilianand Calabrian shores havedied in vain .

G REAT EART H Q UAKE D I S A S T E RS O F H IS TO RYB . C. 464— L aconia shaken and S parta

ruined ; m ore than persons killed.

A . D . 19— S yriadevastated ; persons

157— Pontius andM acedonia, A s ia; a greatnum berof cities laid inruins and uncountedlives lost.

742— S yria, Palestine and W estern A s ia;

many towns destroyed and loss of li fe re

corded as incalculable.

”

936— Constantinople destroyed and G reece

shaken, with enorm ous loss of li fe.

1137-Cantania, S icily, destroyed ; 1500

killed.

1169—Cantania shaken; its cathedraldestroyed ; thousands killed.

1268—Cilicia, A s iaM inor; ki lled.

1456— N aples andvicini ty ; ki lled.

1531— F ebruary 26, L isbon; killed.

1626— July 30, N aples ; ki lled.

1667— S chamaki ; killed.

1692— June 7, Port R oyal , Jamaica, 3000

ki lled andth ecity laid inruins .

1693—S eptem ber, S icily, killed.

1703— F ebruary 2, T okio, Japan;killed .

1706— N ovem ber 3,A bruzz i , I taly , 5000

1716— A lgeria killed .

1726— Septem ber 1, Palerm o, I taly ; 6000

ki lled .

1731— N ovem ber 30, Pekin, China;killed.

1746— O ctober 28, L ima, and Callao; L imareduced to ruins w ith only 21 of 3000 housesleft standing ; com paratively small loss of

li fe, 1141 of a population of havingbeenkilled.

1751— May 24, Concepcion,Chile, destroyed ;killed.

1754—Cair0 , E gypt ; killed.

1755— N ovem ber 1,

“ T h e G reat L i sbonE arthquake,” cost lives and engulfedcity ; subject of a notable di scription byG race A guilar, in h er novel , “ T he E scape.

”

1759— O ctober30, S yria; killed .

1773— June 7, Santiago, G uatemala,gulfed.

1783— F ebruary 5, M ess ina; killed.

1797— Santa F e and throughout CentralA merica; killed.

1812—March 26, Caracas , V enezuela;killed.

I S I S—June 16, Cutch , I ndia; ki lled ;contourof vast territory changed.

1822—A ugust 10, A leppo; killed.

V I

cn

1822— N ovem ber 19, W est Coast of Chile;ki lled .

1835— F ebruary 20, Concepcion,

partly destroyed ; 5000killed.

1851— A ugust14, M ilfi, I taly ; ki lled.

1852— S eptem ber 16, M anila. P hi lippineI slands ; partly destroyed w ith great loss ofli fe.

1855— T oki0 partly destroyed ; killed.

1857— Decem ber 16, Calabria, I taly ;ki lled.

1859— March 22, Quito E cuador ;killed .

1860— March 20, M endoza, S . A . , 7000killed.

1863— July 2, Mani la, P hili ppines ; 1000killed.

1863— A ugust 15, Peru and E cuador; seriesknownas th e“ G reat S outh A m ericanE arthquakes,” which followed hurricanes , earthtremors , and volcanic eruptions , ending intrem endous shocks of A ugust 13 to 16 andoccas ioning vast tidal waves , causingdeath s andenormous dam agetoproperty.

1875— M ay 15, Columbia, S outh A merica;ki lled.

1881— A pri l 3, S cio, I taly ; killed.

1883— A ugust 26, K rakatoa, volcanic i slandinS undra S traits ; killed.

1883— O ctober 16, A natolia A s ia, andmanysurround ing towns destroyed.

1885— Ju1y 8, Cashm ere ; killed.

1886— Augu3t 31, Charleston, S . C.,and th e

S outh A tlantic Coast ; 98 killed ; propertyloss ,

1887— F ebruary 24, S witzerland, F rance andN orthernI taly ; 2000killed.

1888— M arch, Y unN an, China; 4000 ki lled.

1888— Japan, Province of T ukush ima, 165

m iles north from T okio ; 600killed.

1891— O ctober28, severe shocks inM inoandO waro Provinces , Japan; 7000killed ;houses destroyed.

1897— June 12, A ssam , India;square m i les shaken; believed th e greatestthat ever happened.

1902— M ay 8 , Martinique, eruptionof M ountPelee follows quake; S aint P ierre destroyed ;

killed .

1905— S outhernI taly ; 600killed .

1906— A pril 18 , S anF rancisco; city damagedby quake and in large part destroyed byfire.

1906— A ugust 16, V alparaiso, Chile; 1000

killed ; rendered hom eless .

1907— January 14, K ingston; 1200ki lled .

E DS — E arthquakeandtidal wave inI taly .

Ch fle;

5000

INT RO DUCT IO N .

A R T H Q UA K E disasters have followed each other with appalling frequency throughout the centuries

,and have

,as in the

dreadful I talian catastrophe,proved a scourge of plague

proportions ; yet s cientists are at loggerheads over the cause ofth is phenomenon

,and it is only within the last thirty years that

the study of earth quakes has been takenup for serious investigation.

S everal distinct causes are suggested for the deadly phe.

nom ena. G reat concussions,even on the surface

,as in the great

lands lide at R ossberg, S witz erland, are capable of producing

powerful shocks in all directions ; and where these slides are

beneath the surface they are able to bring about a disaster likethat of S an F rancisco . A gain

,it i s believed

,that sudden move

ments of th e m olten interior of the earth,against the crust may

be responsible for the violent tremors .

A R E CE N T T H E O R Y .

T he lates t theory,which is regarded as a plaus ible one

,is the

result of years of investigation by the veteran E ng lish seismolog ist, Professor M ilne . H e believes the records now at our comm and

,showing the districts mos t frequented by earthquakes and

the timeat wh ich they occur,correspond to the changes in the

direction of the earth ’s pole

,which i s constantly shifting its

position .

T he reasons for the shift of the pole is put down to themovement of rock m aterial within th e liquid portions of the earthjust below the crust . T hese same migrations of huge quantitiesof solid matter shift the axis of the earth but they do more— theyappear in certain places and exert enormous pressure upon thoseplaces , and create earthquakes, often with the attendant discharge

vn

v i i i I N T R O DU CT I O N .

of molten matter through volcanoes adj acent to the place of thequake.

T h e causes for th e earth-tremors— the presence of which canbenoted thousands of m iles from the centre of disturbance— are

,

therefore,st ill a matter of conj ecture . But no such conflict of

opinion exists as to th e localities most affl icted . In fact,scientists

have agreed that there are two great zones of earthquakes . T he

mos t important of these z ones includes some 54 per cent . of allthe shocks

,and i s outlined by the A lps and the M editerranean

(where th e I talian disaster occurred), the Caucasus and the

H imalayas .

T he other belt surrounds the Pacific O cean,following the

line of the big m ountain ranges in thewestern part of N orth andS outh A merica , and festooning the islands on the borders ofE asternA sia and M alaysia . T h i s latter belt includes 4 1 per cent .of all the shocks studied

,so that 95 per cent . of all recorded

shocks belong to one or the other of the two great belts .

S T U D I E D B Y JA P A N .

S o ably have seismologis ts handled the subj ect of earthquakesthat they have been able to deduce mos t interesting facts regardingtheir occurrence . F or instance

,Dr. O mori

,the distinguished

professor of seism ology in the U niversity of T okyo (Japan , becauseit is a victim of shocks

,i s proving an excellent student of them),

has brought out the fact that the earthquakes follow each other inth ese two belts in a systematic way . T hey do not appear as anextension of each other in the same belt ; but invariably whenthere has been a violent tremor in one province

,the next disturb~

ance is likely to occur in a distant section in the same belt ratherthan a neighboring one .

I t was because of th is that P rofessor O mori, on h is visit toCalifornia , after the earthquake of A pril 18

,1906, was able to

express the view th at the next great s hock upon the Pacific coas tof N orth and S outh America would occur in th e seism ic belt southof th e equator. And

,sure enough ,

beforehe reached Japan,came

the shocks which were so disastrous to V alparaiso,in Chile.

I N T R O DU CT I O N . ix

T hen came the earthquake in M exico in 1907, this time equidistant from both SanF rancisco and Chile

,and

,oddly enough

,less

violent than the V alparaiso one,as that was less violent than the

California catastrophe. R easoning from this , it would not be improbable that the next shock, following upon the I talian one,would be in the samebelt, but in

'

the H imalaya district,while a

third successive shock should still later be felt in the Caucasus,

m idway between the two .

S cientists long ago recognized that earthquake zones are alsozones of activevolcanoes . T his is particularly true of the I talian(M editerranean-A lps)section of the first belt spoken of above, andof the Pacific O cean belt . I taly sh ows the sudden activity of thevolcanic s ystem in the neighborhood and invariably

, great tremorsin Japan are followed by volcanic explosions of fearful intensity .

F or this reason it has been popularly supposed that earthquakes have their origin in volcan ic disturbances . O f course

,it

cannot be denied that the coincidence i s a striking one, yet the

relation of earthquakes to volcanic action i s not that wh ich hadbeen generall y supposed . I t is true th at both have their origin inthe same neighborhood and t h is neighborhood i s usually one

where m ountains havebeen built up by the cooling of the earth,

and the consequent wrinkling of its surface . But today it is onlywhere m ountains are still growing

,where they are being fashioned

and re-fashioned,that earthquakes and active volcanoes are to be

found together. In those places vast areas are tossed about byinternal action and the squeez ing which attends this processusually forces out molten rock m atter through the volcanoes .

W hen the mountains have ceased to grow lava i s no longerexuded through volcanoes but earthquakes are poss ible where theearth is dead

,

” as was the case in California . De Montessus,the great geologist, says W hile we may cite regions frequentlyshaken by earthquakes which , at the same time

,have their active

volcanoes,the fact should be recognized that there i s independence

of the seismicity and volcanicity ; that while there is coincidencebetweenthe unstable regions and eruptions , one phenomonadoesin amarked degree cause the other .

”

x I N T R O DUCT I O N .

I t is true that th e volcanic andseismic histories of the same

province show that unusual earthquake intensity occurs at thesame time as excessive volcanic activity . During the great Calabrian earthquake of S eptember 8 , 1905, the greatest for a centuryfor that neighborhood prior to th e present one , the neighboringvolcano

,V esuvius , sh owed not the slightest s ympathy . E igh t

m onths later, however, there occurred in it the greates t eruptionin almost three centuries . G oing back to the fearful earthquakein Calabria , in 1783, we findthat both E tna and V ulcano onlybecam e active after some time . I t would seem

,then , that the

underground changes producing earthquakes are responsible forth e throwing out of masses of matter through the fissures calledvolcanoes .

I taly,although a heavy sufferer through earth quake and vol

canic disturbances , has not been alone in frequently paying tollin lives to earth tremors . T he lower valleyof the T agus , uponwhose bank the city of L isbon i s built, has a long record of disastrous earthquakes , the most noteworth y of which were those of1309, 1531 and 1755. U ntil the disaster at M essina theL isbon horrorof 1755 took first rank , in many respects , among all recorded earthquakes . T he first shocks of this earthquake came without otherwarning than adeep sound resembling thunder, wh ich appeared toproceedfrom beneath th e ground, andit was immediatel y followedby a quaking wh ich threw down almost the entire city . In s ix

minutes sixty thousand people perished . T he day was almostimmediately turned into nig h t , owing to the thickness of the dustfrom the sh aken city and the ruins quickly took fire

,so that to the

destruction from the shocks were added the horrors of a conflagration and pillage by bands of robbers . T he new L isbon quay

,

which had been built entirely of marble,suddenly sank into the

sea with an immense crowd of people, who had g athered in supposed safety upon it

,and the accounts state that not one of the

bodies ever floated to the surface .

F ollowing hard uponthe first shocks,the searetired from the

land,carrying boats and other craft with it

,only to return in a

great wave 60 feet in heigh t,which completed the destruction in

I N T R O DU CT I O N xi

and about the city . T his great sea wave,which was

,1until that

which recently wrought such havoc in I taly,the mightiest which

has ever been described in connection with an earthquake,not

only swept the coast of the I berian Peninsula,but extended with

destructive violence to the coasts of many distant countries . A t

K insale,in I reland

,it was strong enough to whirl vessels about

andto pour into the market place .

T he present s cene of disaster,Calabria and N ortheastern

S icily , has a long record of shocks and for no other country saveJapan have the records of local earthquakes been so long or so

well preserved . T he areas shaken have not been extraordinaryforextent, but as regards both the changes in the country producedand in the loss of life which occurred they rank among the greatestin history . T he shocks of 1783, which cost lives

,came

without warning,and in the space of two minutes threw down

numberless cities and villages . H ere again there was a tidal wave,and1600 people who sought safety on crafts were destroyed by it.T he coast outline has been changed by every quake ; in fact, thereis no such thing as a permanent coast outline near Calabria .

T he E mpire of Japan is , as regards its land area , perhaps asunstable as any upon the globe

,and the records of its earthquakes

are probably as complete as any that are in existence . T he totalnumber of recorded destructive earthquakes ,

in a period of nearly1500 years is 223. S ince the beginning of the seventeenth centurythe records prove that a destructive earthquake has occurred somewhere in th e E mpire once every two and a half years . T he earthquake of O ctober 28 , 189 1 , shook an area of square miles

,

or more than three-fifth s of the entire area of Japan . W ithout theleast notice the stroke fell

,and in thirty seconds there followed a

destruction of 7000 lives and buildings,while people

were more or less seriously injured .

In 1897 occurred the earthquake of widest geographical extentyet recorded . I t was at A ssam

,I ndia, and in two minutes and a

half destroyed everything within an area of square miles,

and‘

shook with more or less violence some two million squaremiles .

xi i I N T R O DU CT I O N .

T heU nited S tates has a list of shocks,which have in several

instances been very disastrous . T he earthquake of 18 1 1 alongthe L ower M iss issippi R iver was felt throughout the U nited S tates ,and between December of 18 1 1 and M arch of 18 1 2 not less than1874 shocks were recorded in the M ississ ippi V alley . T he neighborhoodof N ew M adrid

,Mo.

,never entirely ceased shaking

,and

rumblings are heard today .

In 1886 came the quake along the A tlantic seaboard . Beforethe eventful A ugus t 31 , 1886, few ,

i f any , of the inh abitants of thequiet city of Charleston

, S . C.,had the sligh test idea that they

s tood in danger from earthquakes . Y et the A tlantic seaboard is aplace of relatively high seism icity . In that earthquake of 1886

the casualities were few,although chimneys were destroyed .

T he California earthquake of A pril 18 , 1906, is likely to bememorable because of the value of the property destroyed and theinterest it aroused inAmericans as to the danger from earthquakesin our own country . I t is a fact

,for instance

,th at N ew England

i s a province of rather high seism icity,although no earthquakes

of destructive violence have been recorded . T he same statementapplies w ith almost equal force for the entire A tlantic coast fromN ova S cotia to G eorg ia . O ther districts of the nation w h ich areespecially likel y to bedisturbed are the Central M ississippi V alley ,thevalley of the S t. L awrence and large areas not as yetwell determ ined in the G reat Basin and P acific coast regions of theW estern S tates .

W ith the advent of recent self-registering instrum ents allothers have passed out of use. T he seismograph is in principle afinely suspended pendulum

,usually of cons iderable weight , whose

motionoperates a series of levers,which in turn make m arks on a

piece of paper mounted on a revolving drum . A ll the complexseismograph instruments are varieties of th is type . T he pendulum only records earth motions

,and is so balanced that its swings

are not kept up except by a continuation of the earth tremors,

whereas an ordinary pendulum wouldkeep on oscillating if s tarted .

S eismograph s are housed in cellars , and i f used to recorddelicate

,distant shocks are brough tincontact with the rock under

I N T R O DUCT I O N . xiii

ly ing the soil of the cellar . In the construction of such a cellarcare is taken to keep the locality distant from railroad tracks orstreets of heavy traffic . S eismog raph s which are used to studylocal shocks of great intensity are placed on loose soil

,since it

serves better to leng then out the record of a sudden shock .

T he countries which have been the greatest sufferers throughearthquake shock have produced the ablest seismologists— Japanand I taly , T he I talian station is at R occa di Papa

,near R ome

,

and almost all its instruments have been designed by its distinguished director, Professor A gem ennone. T he real I talian headis Professor Palazzo, of th e Central O ffice of M eteorology andG eodynamics , who co-ordinates the work of fifteen stations of thefirst rank and controls 800 seism ic correspondents .

Japan,with its relatively small territory

,has at present

,in

addition to its Central M eteorolog ical O bservatory , and the L aboratory of S eismological I nstitute of the I mperial U nivers ity (both atT okyo), 71 local stations provided with seismographs and 1437other stations scattered through out Japan .

A merica is far to the front in this respect . G reat Britaindoes important work in its many possessions scattered over theworld. G ermany has twelve earthquake stations

,in addition to

the chief station at S trasburg, where may be found the highestdevelopment of instrumental refinement in earthquake study.

E arthquakes are accounted for in two d i fferent ways . O ne theory i sthat the earth i s going through aprocess l i ke that of anapp le indrying,which produces wr ink les . T he other i s the steam boi ler theory— that i s ,that water finding access to th e hot inter ior of theearth causes exp losionsfrom time to t ime.

O f these the latter theory i s themore l i kely to account forth e greatcatastrophe in S i c i ly and S outhern I taly . T he mere coo l ing off of theoutside crust of th e earth wou ld not account for the v io lence of the

I ta l ianearthquakes,though i t wou ld account for such mild changes of

surface as caused the S anF rancisco disaster .I nS anF ranci sco one stratum of rocks slid a few feet , thereby causing

a smal l tidal wave and upsetting bui ld ings , whose foundations wereth rown out of placeby the sh i ft ing of stratum .

T he S i c i l ian earthquake i s of the boi ler type. S uch earthquakesoccur near large bodies of water

,and where there are crev i ces or deep

craters in the earth ’

s surfaceunder thewater.T he interior of the earth i s l i ke a superheated boi ler . I t i s fi l led

with a mass of mol ten lava heated under great pressure to a temperaturethousands of degrees h igher thanany known heat on the surfaceof theearth .

W henby the contracting of the earth ’s surface a crev i ce opens underan ocean or seathewater flows down at once to the hot lava hundreds offeet below . T here it is converted into superheated steam of enormousrending power . Unless th is pressure i s rel ieved by a vo lcano

,there i s an

earthquake, when th eground exp lodes like a superheated boi ler .M t. E tna, M t. V esuv ius andM t. S trombol i are the three volcani c

safety valves on theM edi terranean whenth e hot lava below seeks out letfor i ts superheated steam . I f these volcanoes blow off the earthquakedisturbance i s s l ight .

F or thousands of years V esuv ius , E tna and S trombol i have eruptedfrom time to t ime

,rel iev ing the boi ler pressurewith in. T his t ime those

safety val ves of nature d id notwork . L i kea boi ler when its safety va l vedoes not work , th e resu l ting exp losion was d isastrous .

I nthe Pacific O cean such earthquakes are frequent . T he deeper andlarger the body of water themore likely i t i s to leak throug h in th e

mo l ten interior.G eologists have so accurately p lotted the earth ’s surface that the

earthquakeandvo lcanic areas arewel l defined . T h is wi ll no more prevent the resettl ing of E astern S i c i ly and the toeof I taly than did the

eruption of Pompei i or the destruction of S an F rancisco prevent thebui lding of anew c ity onthe ruins .

CO NT ENT S .

PR E F A CE

I N T R O DU CT I O N

CH A PT E R I .

T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H Q U A K E A T M E S S I N A .— CI T Y S L E E P I N G

W H E N D I S A S T E R CA M E .— CR U S H E D I N F A L L I N G H O M E S — D R A

M A T I C S CE N E S — T H E T I DA L W A V E .

CH A P T E R I I .

F I G H T I N G F O R F O O D I N T H E R U I N S .

-F A M I S H E D BA N D G R O P E I N D E

E R I S .

-G H 0U L S F I G H T W I T H F I R E A R M s .

— S CO U R G E Y E T T O CO M E .

— V A N DA L I S M B R E A K S O U T

CH A P T E R I I I .

F R O M T H E L I P S 0F S U R V I V O R S — H I S B E D B E S I D E A N A BYS S .

— F A CI N G

A L M O S T CE R T A I N D E A T H .— W O M A N S A W E D F R E E — CU T F I N G E R S

F R O M D E A D — BU R I E D 30 F E E T D E E P 5

CH A PT E R I V .

G R O U N D S P L I T U P E V E R YW H E R E .

—R E S CU E D H I S R E L A T I V E S — O L D

M A N’

S CH A R I T Y .

— B0A T I N QU E E R P R A N K S .

— I M P R I S O N E D F O R

F O U R DA YS — A CT R E S S S A V E S S O L D I E R . 59

CH A PT E R V .

T E L L O F“H O R R O R S — S L E E P I N G W H E N CR A S H CA M E .

E S CA P E — P U B L I C BU I L D I N G S G O N E .

xvi CO N T E N T S .

CH A PT E R V I .

R E G G I O V A N I S H E S I N T I DA L W A V E — W H E N I T F I N A L L Y E M E R G E D F E WO F I T S P O P U L A T I O N S U R V I V E D .

— N ow A N U T T E R R U I N

F A CE O F CO U N T R Y CH A N G E D .

— A N A R CH Y

CH A P T E R V I I .

D E V A S T A T I O N I N S M A L L E R CI T I E S .

— T E R R I F I E D CR O W D S P R A Y .

L I V E D O N D O G M E A T .

— N O P A R T O F CA L A B R I A E S CA P E D .

—T E R

R I B L E F L I G H T O F BA N D O F R E F U G E E S . 82

CH A PT E R V I I I .

A K I N G L Y K I N G T o T H E R E S CU E — QU E E N S A V E S CH I L D R E N .

— V I CT O R

E X P L O R E S R U I N S .

— N A R R O W L Y E S CA P E S D E A T H .

— ~H E L E N A H U R T

I N P A N I C — D U K E A N D D U CH E S S O F A O S T A JO I N I N W O R K O F

M E R CY . 90

CH A P T E R I X .

BU R Y I N G D E A D I N T R E N CH E S .

— QU I CK L I M E T o D E S T R O Y B O D I E S — A N

I M P R E S S I V E F U N E R A L CE R E M O N Y .

— A M E R I CA N QU I E T S T H E I R

F E A R S — P R O P O S A L T O M O V E CI T Y

CH A PT E R X .

W O R L D R U S H E S R E L I E F .

— A M E R I CA I N F O R E F R O N T O F M E R CY .

— P R E S I

D E N T’

S M E S S A G E T O CO N G R E S S A P P R O P R I A T E D B Y U . S .

-R E L I E F S H I P S A I L S .

—O T H E R N A T I O N S A I D .

CH A PT E R X I .

T H E S T R I CK E N R E G I O N .

— T H E P A T H O F T H E R U I N .

— S H A K E N A G A I N

A N D A G A I N .

-P R I ZE T oo O F T E N D E A T H .

— M A G N I T U D E O F D I S A S

T E R .

—QU A K E S P E R I O D I CA L L Y I N S I C I L Y A N D CA L A B R I A 118

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xvi i i CO N T E N T S .

CH A P T E R X I X .

E R U P T I O N O F E T N A I N T H E Y E A R I 865.

— M U T U A L D E P E N D E N CE O F A L L

T E R R E S T R I A L P H E N O M E N A — S E A CO A S T L I N E O F V O L CA N O E S .

T H E PA C I F I C“CI R CL E O F F I R E

”246

CH A P T E R X X .

T O R R E N T S O F S T E A M E S CA P I N G F R O M CR A T E R S — G A S E S P R O D U CE D B Y

T H E D E CO M P O S I T I O N O F S E A -W A T E R — H YP O T H E S E S A S T O T H E O R I

G I N O F E R U P T I O N — G R O W T H O F V O L CA N O E S 265

CH A PT E R X X I .

V A R I O U S K I N D S O F L A V A — B E A U T I F U L CA V E I N S CO T L A N D .

— CR E V I CE S

I N V O L CA N O E S — B U R N I N G D U S T CO V E R S S N O W 285

CH A P T E R X X I I .

V O L CA N I C P R O JE CT I L E s .

— E X P L O S I O N S O F A S H E S .

— S U B O R D I N A T E V O L

CA N O E S .

— M O U N T A I N S R E D U CE D T O D U S T .

— F L A S H E S A N D F L A M E S

P R O CE E D I N G F R O M V O L CA N O E S

CH A PT E R X X I I I .

V O L CA N I C T H E R M A L S P R I N G S .

— G E Y S E R s .

— S P R I N G S I N N E W Z E A L A N D

— CR A T E R S O F CA R B O N I C A CI D

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M

CH A PT E R I .

T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H Q U A K E A T M E S S I N A — CI T Y S L E E P I N G

W H E N D I S A S T E R CA M E .— CR U S H E D I N F A L L I N G H O M E S — D R A

M A T I C S CE N E S — T H E T I DA L W A V E .

TH E hour was early dawn. M essina, the centre of the greatest disaster of historic times, lay s leep ing on that fatal 28th day of De

cember, 1908 .

T hat faint chi llwhich comes to the semi-tropic lands in the waninghours of a mid-winter ’ s night was in the lazy air.

T he M editerranean lay like a sea of glass beyond the breakwater .

T he faint breath of breeze that crept over its waters from the northwestwas scarcely sufficient to ruffle its p lacid surface.

E tna’ s lava-scored but vine-clad S lopes darkened the southern horizon, while from its snow-capped peak, reared feet into the heavens

, a thin wisp of smoke, gilded by the eternal fires in the death-dealing crater below, floated idly O ff to the southeast .

T he hour was dawn,but not a ray of l ight came from the heavens

to banish the foreboding pall that hung like a sable shroud over thedoomed city.

T he wide streets, with their myriad of gleaming lights, were deserted save as here and there a belated straggler, muffled to keep outthe unwonted chi ll, hurried to the early mass in some one of the city ’ smajest ic churches .

Inthe ca'pacious harbor scores of vessels swung id ly at anchor.T he s ilence was unbroken save for the muffled tread of the sentries

on the ramparts of the C itadel and the lesser fortresses that dotted thewater front .

T he city slept .Inmassive palaces and humble hovels '

alike men, women and chi ldren lay wrapped in a slumber from which they were so soon to start in

” terroronly to be p lunged anew into that sleep that knows no waking .

Ody and mind al ike by the holiday revels they33

34 T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H Q U A K E A T M E S S I N A .

dreamed on. N O foreboding of their impending doom cast its dreadshadow over their couches .

A llnature seemed at rest and at peace.

S uddenly out of the skies came a sinister hiss that caused the verypriests at thealtar to halt in their sacred oflices . H eads bowed in prayerwere raised as the his s deepened into an unearth ly shriek . T he kneel ingworshippers leaped to their feet for one brief instant and then s low lyand reverent ly, but with an added touch of terror, again sank to theirknees and began to feverishly finger their beads .

Crash ! Bang !T he heavens thundered as from the bursting of tenthousand bombs .T he hiss deepened ti l l it seemed that a myriad of red hot serpents

were writhing in the waters .

T hen camethewhirl, the rush and roar of a torrential rainS O terrifying that not a face but blanched with apprehension. O nly those whohave faced an electrical storm in the tropics can imagine one hundredthpart of the horror of that supernatural demonstration.

T H E E A R T H B E G I N S T O Q U I V E R .

T heearth began to pulsate. S lowly and in rhythmic measureat firstas though trying its strength and then with a wi ld and frenzied burst l ikethe dance of a million imps . I t rocked not only M ess ina, but half ofS ici ly and all of Calabria l ike a raft in a storm .

I t lasted but an instant , but in that brief span scores of thousandsperi shed ’neath theruins of the stricken city.

T he first crash from the heavens reached every ear in M essina .

T he houses had begun to vomit terror-stricken m en,women and

chi ldren before even the fantastic dance of earth began.

F ul l wel l did those who dwelt in the shadow of majestic but deathdeal ing E tna know what the arti llery of the heavens portended .

S cience may present its theories. T hose who dwell in the shadowof death haveno use for them .

A ges of calamity had taught those menof M essina that earth andheavens act in harmony and that the ratt leof the thunder and the roar

T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H QUA K E A T ME S S I N A . as

of the tempest was but a prelude to a drama of death Inwhich the veryearth beneath their feet was to sway like the waves of the sea.

T housands gained the open streets before the final crash came.

W alls fell to the right of them ; roofs crashed to the left of them ; cornicesand chimneys toppled before them , while death stalked in their wake todestroy any who hes itated or paused . O ther countless thousands weretoo late or were held prisoners of jammed doors and fallen stairways .

T he earth shook itself in one great convulsive movement as thoughthe giant whom tradition says Jupiter ages ago impri soned beneath themass ive rocks of E tna was struggling, after centuries of confinement ,to break h is bonds.

D E A T H W R O U G H T B Y D I S A S T E R .

W alls shivered , gaped and fel l , carrying down to death all who sti l lclung, with convulsive fear, to their racked and ruined homes .

Beams groaned and creaked , as if in mortal agony, and then at thefinal and supreme moment , sl ipped from their sockets in the walls .

R oofs crashed to earth , carrying down with them the massive archedfloors beneath .

E ven allof those who had sought safety in the streets did not escape .

Inmany of the narrower thoroughfares the debris piled many feet deepfrom curb to curb

,burying under countless tons of stone and mortar

not only those who in their terror had taken shelter in their shadows,but the fleeing hordes who, maddened by the terror of that awful moment, had sought safety in fl ight .

S t ill other walls,relieved of the burden of roofs and floors , hung

tottering, seamed and scarred by the terrible forces of the cataclysm .

Crash !T he very heavens seemed appalled and the low-hanging c louds te

‘flected back the sound .

the day of wrath, screamed a thousand throats.

gas tanks , at the northern endof the town hadblownup, and before the force of that terrific explosionthe tottering andhesitating masonry crashed prostrate to the dust, burying hundreds of al

36 T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H QU A K E A T M E S S I N A .

ready cut,bruised and battered human beings in the only tomb most of

them wi l l ever know.

In this crash the Capucine Convent fel l, whi le hundreds perished .

W i thin the churches was to be found thenearest approach to serenity in al l that stricken city . T he black-frocked priests hes itated but amoment , and then, grasping the sacred hosts in their hands, s lowly andw i th even more than usual reverence resumed their chants ti l l the loosened beams and seamed and gaping wal ls let tons of death and destructiondoWn upon the flaming altars

,burying priests and peop le al ike in the

depths of a funeral pyre.

T he gas lamps flared for the brief instant of the explos ion like thelast dying fl icker of a cand le. T hen they went out , leaving the street sin utter darkness .

In the horrible wrenching and grinding and twisting of the earththe electri c wires broke

,and a mi l l ion hissing serpents, spitting death ,

coi led about the panic-stricken survivors .A gain the ground trembled and theearth yawned in hideous fissures

that seamed the streets l ike giant mouths,hungry to devour the panic

stricken and the help less .

W A T E R M A I N S G U S H F O R T H D E A T H .

T hewater mains parted and the reservoirs gushed forth death anddevastation.

M eanwhi le the co ld rain from the north , driven by a wind that hadrisen to the heights of a hurri cane

,merci lessly beat upon the helpless

and hopeless survivors .Y et

, bl ind ly groping in the almost S tygian blackness to which thedust clouds from the fal len bui ldings gave added depth , the scarred andstricken survivors p lunged on to the open spaces where they felt thatS afety lay.

Inthemad panic few stopped to consider direction saveas i t carriedthem to the broad esp lanade that l ined the harbor, and away from the

E tna of which centuries of peri l had ingrained fear into their very beings .

Cl imb ing over seemingly impassable barriers of broken stone and

T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H Q U A K E A T M E S S I N A . 37

tw isted and tang led beams, daring death in the shadow of a hundred tottering arches , S l inking along in the shadows of seamed and scarred masonry, thousands fina l ly made their way through those acres of deso lation and death to thewater front .

Inthe capacious square that lay open between the great citadel, the

railway station and the mass ive warehouses and palaces at the southernendof the harbor tens of thousands struggled forp laces as far from men

acing wa l ls of masonry as possible.

Inthe smal ler square fronting thegreat cathedral and in the S hadowof its massivewal ls other thousands c lustered for safety .

P roud ly and defiantly the great cathedral had stood the ravages oftwo great fires and count les s earthquakes for nearly a thousand years ,ever S ince the N orman conqueror

,away back in the eleventh century,

had shown to classic S ici ly the so lemn beauty of theN orman-G othic architecture.

I N T H E DO O M E D CA T H E DR A L .

S O far through all the centuries , i t had not fai led thosewho had fled

to i t for safety . A t it s high altar alone of al l the churches inM essina,the solemn chanting of the mass was sti ll giv ing hope in the midst O f

devastation,destruction and death .

V ain hope!T he grim reaper had not yet taken his fullmeed of humansacrifices .

T he grand O ld structure, the noblest andmost noteworthy in M essinawhich had sheltered their forebears through many a S iege of destructionwas now

,forthe first time, to proveunworthy of the trust reposed in it .

A l ready it s scarred wal ls , weakened by the stress of the centuries ,were seamed and cracked by the tumultuous wri things O f the earth .

A gain it s foundations trembled andi ts massivewal ls , as though soulweary after its age-long fight , crumbled to the dust .

T he university, the almshouse, the municipal hospital and the custom house al ready had fal len .

ctures that l ined the docks to the southpenseato thenorth already were S hape

less heaps of stone and mortar , with here and there a wall ri sing l ike a

88 T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H QU A K E A T M E S S I N A .

T he T rinacria and the V ictoria hotels , with their hosts of touristsof al l nations

,crashed into mounds of ruins over what were in grim truth

the graves of hundreds .T heT heatre V ictor E manueleandthe T heatre della Munizione, two

structures of the highest class, were scarred and battered , their roofsfal len in andheaps of mortar defiling the p lush andbrocade where, buta few hours before, grace and youth and beauty had smi led away theirlast happy hours .

N O B L E S T R UCT U R E DE S T R O YE D .

T he massive antique co lumns of the Church of the A nnunziata deiCatalani, another grand old N orman structure, tottered and fel l, crushedand broken, whi le the entire facade of the noble structure, wavering forabrief instant , swel led themass of S hapeless fragments .

T he A merican Consulate, too , fel l at the first great S hock, buryingthe Consul, A rthur S . Cheney, and h is wife. A nother A merican whowas ki l led was Joseph H . Peirce, former U . S . V i ce-Consul , who with hisfami ly were crushed to death .

T he entire fami ly was asleep when the first S hock came, accordingto the ri ctal of M is s E velyn Peirce, a cousin of M r. Peirce, who was safeat N ap les . M r. Peirce was the first one to realize the terrible S hakingas an earthquake. H e urged his wife to take the younger chi ldren andmake her escape. H e then rushed into the room where the elder children were s leeping to arouse them ,

but the tidal wave rushed in andcompleted the work of destruction . T he tottering walls of the Peircehouse col lapsed and the entire fami ly was buried beneath the ruins .

M r. Peircewas theM essina correspondent of the A ssociated P ress .A mong the bui ldings wrecked was the barracks of the carabiniers

,

in which 50 perished in the ruins .

A palace O f 26rooms col lapsed andof the inmates only four escaped .

T he seaward fronts of the U niversi ty and Palazzo M unicipale re

main standing, but the interi ors are gone. T he bui ldings along the

waterside col lapsed l ike houses of cards .T he S antel ia barracks were destroyed w i th most of the troops in

them , only thirty soldiers escaping out of 230 .

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i t) T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H QU A K E A T M E S S I N A .

Inthe growing brightness of the dawn they saw what yet was hiddenfrom those lower down along thewater ’s edge.

R earing its head fifty feet in the air a giant wavewas racing from the

Calabrian shore. T hey did not know, could not know, that already thissamewave, first sweeping to theeastward , had engulfed R eggio di Calabria

,a city of people, eight miles to the southeast on the I tal ian

mainland,across the S traits of M essina and that rebounding from the

Calabrian c l iff s i t was returning to wreak a further vengeance onstricken M essina .

T hose to thenorth, beyond theendof the breakwater, saw it almostas soon as the survivors in the forts.

In an instant there was a wi ld rush for safety, back across thosehideous pi les of ruins, whi le the groans of the injured, hopelessly pinioned beneath beam and bri ck, added to the horror .

N one then thought of succoring the injured . S elf-preservation isnature’ s first law and self-preservation was possible only by flight .

I t seemed but a moment before the hissing wave, speeding alongw i th the fieetness of a race-horsewas upon them .

B A T T L I N G I N T H E V O R T E X O F T H E T I DA L W A V E .

M en, women and chi ldren again had a batt le with the most diabo l ical forces of nature for their very l ives .

T hewave, 50 feet high, ro lled back three blocks from the shore l ineand in its waters thousands met that death they had so miraculously escaped in the vortex of fal l ing wal ls and crashing masonry.

H undreds of half-dressed men, women and chi ldren who had fled

from thei r houses to the street s were caught in the onrush of waters anddrowned or injured .

Ina moment it had receded,carrying with it many of its unhappy

vict ims , whi le the bodies of hundreds of others strewed the strand .

F lames then began making their way slowly over the devastatedarea in an inexorable advance. I mpri soned and pinioned human beings

,

unable to extricate themselves, burned al ive, hundreds were dying of

their injuries , while many were starv ing .

T he street s were fi l led with confused masses of brick andmortar

T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H QU A K E A T ME S S I N A . 41

beams, furniture, chimneys and roofs . In many cases the streets appearedas enormous crevasses, twisted into fantastic shapes .

T he celebrated avenue, which runs along the inner sea frontfrom the university to the postoffice, was impassable. A ll the publ icmonuments that were there had disappeared .

A ll the water pipes, sewers and gas pipes of the city had been destroyed , and water andfi lth were flooding the torn streets . G as explo

sions occurred frequent ly, and resulted in scores of smal l fires .

CR Y I N G N E E D°

W A S D O CT O R S .

F or several hours after the first destructive shock M essina was absolutely without organized rel ief. T he municipal officials

,the so ldiers ,

the po l ice, doctors and nurses by the hundreds were ei ther buried ordrowned .

T he first work of rescue was performed by vo lunteers from shipsin the harbor and groups of survivors who, at great labor andpersonaldanger, extricated many persons pinioned beneath the wreckage.

M essina’s crying need was fordoctors, clothing and food and firemento combat the flames .

D octors,nurses and firement were hurried into the wrecked city,

but the lack of food and water made the work of rescue difficult . T he

R ussian and B ri ti sh warships at M essina sent crews ashore, and thevessel s were transformed into hospitals .

A ll the hospitals in Catania were crowded , and even the schoolswere converted into infirmaries. T he les s seriously injured of M essinawere dispatched by the dozens to Palermo .

M inister of Publi c W orks Berto l ini arrived , and organized severalcorps of vo lunteers for rescue work .

R efugees tel l ing of their escape, relate that after escaping from theirruined houses they waited in terror for the coming of l ight . T hen theymade their way over the obstructions in the streets to the open p laces .T hey hadto leave behind them under the ruins count less victims who

I t is asserted that probably half the fatal ities occurred because it was

12 T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H QUA K E A T M E S S I N A .

impossible for the survivors to render prompt assistance. N ot the

least of the suffering was caused by the downpour of cold rain.

T hewaters of the S traits of M essina were covered with the floatingbodies of m en and animals and all kinds of wreckage. M ore than 300vessels were adrift off M essina alone, whi le hundreds of others lay onthebottom of the troubled sea.

InM essina crowds of nude persons walked the streets with imagesof saints . T hey al l appeared demented . F rom the stricken city fivehugeco lumns of smoke could be seen rolling heavenward .

A ll the towns and vi l lages along the S traits were rapid ly becomingdepopulated , as there were widespread fears of further convulsions .

E S CA P E O F A D E PU T Y .

S cenes of the weirdest nature were being enacted at M essina andother ruined cities . Clouds of crows and buzzards descended on the

stricken district , having crossed the sea in response to somemysteriousintuition of the disaster .

T he roads between Palermo and M essina were fi l led with long, sadprocessions of wounded refugees, painfully making their way to the

westward . T hey all bel ieved they were the only survivors .T he wife of the F rench consul at M essina, the sole survivor of her

fami ly, final ly reached M i lazzo . S he was bad ly injured . H er husband ,

son and daughter were ki l led .

L udovico Fuici, a member of the Chamber of Deputies, who wasat M essina, at the time of the earthquake, gave an account of the deathof his brother, N icolo , who was also a deputy, and the efforts to savehim , which was abso lutely harrowing .

F rom 6 o ’c lock M onday morning unti l midnight he could hear thedesperate lamentations of his brother and his anguished appeal s for help

,

w ithout being able to reach him , notwithstanding his frantic eff orts . A t

midnight the groans gradual ly died away, and nothing afterward was

heard :M any of thewounded died before reaching Palermo, andmany have

died since they arr ived .

T H E H O R R O R S O F T H E E A R T H QU A K E A T M E S S I N A . 43

M ost of the refugees were practical ly naked ; some in tattered garments picked up in the streets.

T he stories re lated by the survivors in the hospitals and at the foodsupp ly stat ions, whererations were issued twi cea day, al l reflect the horror of the fateful 28th of December. T here were many miraculous escapes, but the cases of bereavement are without number.

A cobbler named F rancesco M issiano relates that immediately afterthe first shock he and h is wife and chi ldren rushed out into the street .F ires were breaking out all around them . H earing groans from a pi leof debris nearby the cobbler made a hurried examination. H e found twogirls dying . T he head of onewas split open, whi lethe chest of the otherhad been crushed in. T he cobbler picked up a baby, but it expired inhis arms .

I t took his party hours to traverse the heaps of ruins between hishouseand thewater front . A fter placing h is fami ly in safety he returnedto seek h is mother and sisters, but hewas obl iged to give up the eff ort .I twas impossible to make h is way back to h is home.

During the thirty-six hours the cobbler passed among the ruins hedid not seemore than or survivors . T his man owes his safetyto the fact that he lived in a one-story house. H e says that no help arrived for thirty hours after the catastrophe.

Anold man who had lost all h is family was seen going about theruins vainly asking forfood . H e had loaded himself down with h is mostvaluable possessions . W hile on oneof the docks he suddenly cal led out

“A s nobody helps me, I will die, and with these words he threw

himself into the sea. A sailor dragged him out.

CH A PT E R I I .

F I G H T I N G F O R F O O D I N T H E R U I N S .— F A M I S H E D B A N D G R O P E I N D E

B R I S .

—G H O U L S F I G H T W I T H F I R E A R M S .— S CO U R G E Y E T T O CO M E .

—V A N DA L I S M B R E A K S O U T .

JU S T as the B riti sh steamship E bro was preparing to leave M ess inawith refugees an outburst of frightful cries was heard from the

shore. T he refugees on board saw a crowd of maddened persons orevery age break into the custom house. S ome were naked , others halfclothed

,and they al l were mudspattered and half demented . M any

were injured andbleeding . T hey sacked everything that came to theirhands

,seeking food, drink and clothing .

Bands of famished individuals were groping among the debri s in thehope of discovering food . T he first of the searchers who were successful were attacked by others with revo lvers andknives, and were obl igedto defend their finds literal ly with their l ives .

T he struggle was fierce. T he famished m en threw themselves uponeach other l ikewo lves , and several fel l disembowled in defending a handful of dry beans or a few ounces of flour. O ne of the unfortunates waspinned to a p lank with a knife

,while cl inging to his hand was a litt le

chi ld, forwhom hehad sought food .

R evolver shots rang out over the horribledin and confusion. F inally tongues of flame shot up in the darkness, showing that fire was completing the work of destruction.

T his was only one of the many scenes of horror witnessed from the

E bro . M essina was burning, and masses of flames in the darknessshowed where fire was comp leting the destructive beginnings of the

earthquake. A few skeleton houses here and there were all that remained of the once beautiful and prosperous town.

G houl-like figures flittered in the semi-darkness , risking their l ivesamong tottering ruins , not to assist the agonized sufferers

,but in fiend

ish strivings to profit by the appalling disaster. T hey were robb ing the

dead and dying.

F I G H T I N G F O R F O O D I N T H E R U I N S . 45

A llof the survivors speak of themisery suffered by cold and hungerafter their escape, and of the rari ty of other survivors seen in the streetsand open p laces, so that often they bel ieved themselves to be the onlypersons saved ; and of the dense, choking cloud of dust which hung overthe city fora long time, obscuring their v i sion and adding to the horrorsof their bewi lderment ; and of the greater horrors of the succeedingearthquake shocks, especial ly in the darkness , which seemed to forbid

‘

all hope of final escape. T he worst time of al l was the night of Monday. F ew of them mention theeffect of the sei smic wave.

I M P R I S O N E D I N R U I N E D H O M E

Perhaps the most tragic note was struck by anelderly coup le, whodescribed how they were impri soned in the lower part of their ruinedhouse. T hey could only cry for help and heard no answer, save othercries for help from the darkness around them .

A t M essina it was impossible to pass through most of the streets ,which were blocked with hugemounds of fal len debris . H ere and therebodies

,they said, could be seen in inaccess ible places, pinned in by

beams on masonry and projecting from the upper stories of the houses,sometimes lying half buried and horribly contorted .

Infront of the city the seawall was broken up andfal lenandtheseawalk was sunk under water. Behind this were streets upon streets offal len houses . In some p laces the appal ling scenes seem to beggar alldescription.

T he correspondent of the Paris F igaro wired his paper about thistime as follows

“A s each day goes by the disaster appears more horrible, terrifying

and immense. I t i s without precedent in the history of the world . In

my earl ier dispatches I spoke of over dead . T his number doubtless willbe exceeded , fornow i t is conservat ively estimated thatpersons peri shed miserably in thi s staggering catastrophe, and theworstnot yet known . T he scour’ge has not yet done its final work .

“T he trembl ings of the earth continue with sinister rumbl ings , and

at times jets of boiling water surge from the crevasses . T he sources of

46 F I G H T I N G F O R F O O D I N T H E R U IN S :

Inspiteof herculean eff orts, the succor sti ll is insuffi cient . Inthe

more remote regions theunhappy injured aredying forwant of food andmedical treatment . D ogs and swine, enraged by hunger, spring uponthewounded and devour them . I nsatiable fire and uncontrolled faminewi ll inexorably claim their v ictims.

”

T he G overnment hastily sent G eneral F eira D i Cossatto, an armycorps commander, to take full charge of the troops in the devastatedterritory. O ne of his first measures was to declare martial law.

V A N DA L I S M B R E A K S O U T .

V andal ism of the wors t kind had broken out , and the G overnmentadopted themost energeti c and most severemeasures for its repression.

R obbers and looters were shot on s ight .A s before narrated , the prison at M ess ina collapsed . S ome of the

prisoners were ki l led , but the survivors made their escape and j oined thehooligans who were sacking the city. S uch confusion reigned that therobbers met with no resistance. T he local chief of poli ce lay dead inthe rooms of h is ofli ce.

T he robbers pi l laged theruins of shattered bui ldings , and even stolec lothing andvaluables from the corpses of the victims . T hey were notdeterred by the flames that broke out in several sections of the city, buttook advantage of the l ight for their vandal ism . T he night in M essina.was oneof horror indescribable— fire, robbery , dead and dying on everyside, the city in the utmost confusion and the peop le panic-stricken andunder a spell of terror .

T ime only confirms the unspeakable horrors of the overpoweringcatastrophe.

H i story will, perhaps , never divulge its supremest individual tragedies , for earth and sea ruth lessly claimed thousands of human beings,and the flames merci less ly completed the unfinished devastation .

H eavy as was the toll of death in the great disaster,fully tenthou

sand, perhaps more, of the inhab i tants of M essina escaped withtheir l ives. T heir stories wi l l make history , yet few of them will showthe wide perspective that the accounts of men aboard the sh ips in the

harbor exhibit .

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48 F I G H T I N G F O R F O O D I N T H E R U I N S .

wal l of water struck us with such v io lence that I thought al l was over,but by a miracle we came through it .

“I t was l ike a cyc lone from all points of the compass . T he wind

howled and the waves battered and swept the decks . A mazing and terrifying things were happening al l around us . G reat holes opened in thesea i tself and seemed to reach down twenty to thirty feet, and some atlesser depths.

“T he water at first appeared to grow l ivid and thenbecame white

with foam .

A s soon as the worst of the tidal wave had passed I tried to see

what had befal len the town of M essina as the firs t faint streaks of dayl ight appeared , but nothing was v is ibleof mo le or bui ldings . I could see

at first only the out l ineof thehi l ls and a vas t eddying cloud of dust. whichspeedi ly enveloped everything and sett led down over the ship like a fog .

M E S S I N A’

S BU I L D I N G S T O P P L E .

W ith increasing dayl ight we could see how M essina had been destroyed . Before our eyes houses and palaces sti l l were toppling and fal ling to earth with noise l ike so many exploding powder magazines . Closebehind us a Danish steamer had gone down and the surface of thewaterwas l i ttered with all manner of wreckage from it and other wreckedcraft

W hen welooked at theland again it seemed to have taken on somefantastic co loring— something between a yellow tint andan ashen gray.

T he city itself was black with smoke split by ominous red streaks p f

bursting flame. G radually the sea calmed down and the roar of windandwaves decreased .

“T hen shrieks and groans reached our ears, andwe could see hun

dreds of terror-stricken persons flocking down to thewater’ s edge, wav

ing their arms and screaming frantical ly forhelp . M any of them plungedinto the seaandswam out toward our ship . W e took on board as manyas could beaccommodated .

”

’

A t the time of the earthquake the torpedo boat S appho was lyinginthe harbor at M essina, and one of the offi cers told of the occurrencesas follows

F I G H T I N G F O R F O O D I N T H E R U I N S . 455

A t in the morning the sea suddenly became terribly agitated,seeming literal ly to pick up our boat andshake i t . O ther craft were similarly treated and the ships looked like b it s of cork bobb ing about in atempest .

“A lmost immediately a tidal wave

, of huge proportions, swept acrossthe S traits, mounting thecoasts and carrying everything before i t . S coresof ships were damaged , and the H ungarian mai l boat A ndrassy partedher anchors and went crashing into other vessels . M essina Bay waswiped out and the seawas soon covered with masses of wreckage, whichwas carried off in thearms of the receding waters .

”

T he later stories of ships’ officers also depict the terrors of the scenewith start l ing vividness .

L I T T L E CH A N G E I N S T R A I T .

T he commander of the R uss ian cruiser A dmiral Makaroff, after i thad arr ived at N aples with refugees from M essina, gave the fo llowingaccount of thedisaster

“H earing at A goata, S i cily, of the disaster, I hurried to M essina .

T he city was l iterally nothing but a heap of ruins . E very bui lding co llapsed , but in many cases the outward shel ls remained standing and as aresult the general contour of the city was less changed than might beexpected .

T his is particularly trueof the seafront . Inspite of what has beensaid the form of the S traits of M essina show litt le if any change.

T he harbor is fi lled with refuse of every kind , and at one endliesthe wreck of a sunken steamship .

“I t is Impossible to give even a faint idea of the desolation of the

scene. E very now and then we heard the crash of fal l ing floors andwalls . T his constituted the greatest danger to the rescuers . I t was notsafe to approach any standing masonry. M enfrom my vessel had manvnarrow escapes, and I saw several terrible accidents to the brave I tal iansoldiers, who were doing morethan their duty .

“W e lost no time in setting about the work of rescue . W e estab

shore, where we received and treated

33 F I G H T I N G F O R F O O D I N T H E R U I N S .

men, women and chi ldren. W ealso saved the safe of the Bank ofS i cily with its treasure, weighing two tons .

T he mind shrinks from contemplation of the present condition inthe stricken city ; that there are thousands of persons sti l l al ive in the

ruins, and that count less numbers must die.

“T he tidal wave lasted much longer than the earthquake. During

all the t imewe were in the harbor of M essina our vessel shivered interm ittently, as though shaken by some hugemarinemonster .

“I could relatepathetic stories without number . U nder somewreck

age, inclosed in a kind of l i tt le cubby-hole and protected by two heavybeams, I discovered two l ittle bab ies, safe and uninjured . T hey werecomfortable as poss ible, and laughing and playing with the buttons ontheir c lothes . W e could find no trace of their parents, who undoubted lylost their l ives . I t made a terrible impression to see the bereaved children.

N O JO Y I N H E A R T S O F S U R V I V O R S .

M any l ittle ones l ivewhi le their parents are dead, and we saw manymothers with dead bab ies in their arms . I t was also indescribably painful to see themany who had gone crazy from grief. T hey searched andsearched aim lessly for their loved ones , keeping up the quest even aftertfiey had been brought on board our ship .

”

T he S erapin also brought to the outer world stories of heartrendingseparation of fami lies and the hopeless and frantic seeking of relativesone for the other. Just as the steamship was leaving M essina a manmade h is way to the dock and called again and again for h is wife andchi ldren. T he people on board l istened attentively . T hen from theves

sel came an answer : “I am here, I am here,” in a woman’s voice.

“A re

the chi ldren there?” came from the dock . Y es, we are al l here, the

woman rep l ied . But there was no note of j oy from the unfortunatemother . H er heart could hold no happines s after the experiences of thenight .

S hortly after the S erapin clocked at N aples a gangplank was lowered and a few persons wereallowed to board . T he refugees were foundsitting in iso lated groups . T hey gave evidenceof g reat mental depres

'

F I G H T I N G F O R F O O D I N T H E RuI N s . u,

s ion and were utterly exhausted . T hey seemed scarcely conscious of

their surroundings . M ost of them were held in the thrallof their terr ibleexperiences .

A druggist named Pulco relates that at 25 minutes past 5 O’c lock

M onday morning he was on a ferryboat in the port of M essina,going

to R eggio . S uddenly a galeof wind arose, bringing a heavy seawith n.

T hen a great chasm seemed to open inthewater andthe boat went downand struck the bottom . But the waters closed inagainand the ferryboat floated safely on top O f the succeeding wave. M ost of the peopleon board, however, were swept O ff and drowned . T he boat was bad lywrecked , but it floated ashore. Pulcowas sti ll on board .

A fter the first panic, he landed and found R eggio l ike a city of the

dead . N obody was moving in the streets and the si lence was brokenonly by the moans and groans and shrieks of the wounded . Pulco andseveral companions tr ied to extricate somewounded from thewreckage,but this was almost impossible because of the crumbl ing ruins . Inone

of the squares Pulco found a group of people all comp letely naked .

CH A PT E R I I I .

F R O M T H E L I P S O F SuR V I V O R s .— H I S B E D B E S I D E A N A Bvss .

— F A CI N G

A L M O S T CE R T A I N D E A T H .— W O M A N S A W E D F R E E — CU T F I N G E R S

F R O M D E A D — BU R I E D 30 F E E T D E E P .

‘ O N S T A N T I N E D O R E S A ,a L ondon ship broker, had a wonderful

escape from the T rinacria H otel . H e tel ls a thri l ling story of theearthquake disaster. H e says

“I t was a dark

, sti l l night, the co ldest I ever felt in S ici ly . I wentto bed late

,after putting extra covering on the bed. I was awakened

without warning at o ’clock . T hebedfirst rose up and then rockedviolent ly . I clutched the sides of the bed, which seemed to be fal l ingthrough spaceof ages .

“A fterwards I estimated the time to be ten seconds . T hen came a

series of awful crashes , the roof fal l ing al l round m e. I was smotheredin brick and p laster . I knew it was an earthquake. I had been in onebefore in A thens . T hen fo l lowed terrific crashes, mingled with a continuous roar.

“I felt formatches , s truck a light and was horrified to find my bed

on the side of an abyss .

Doresa discovered Craiger, an E ng l ish friend , and from the ruinsrescued a S wede and his wife. A mid the appal l ing surroundings theysucceeded in reaching the quay and getting aboard the Cardiff steamerA fonwen. Doresathen organized a rescue party composed of the A fonwen’ s master, Captain O wen, threeof his sailors and several R ussian sailors . W ith Doresaand Craiger al l returned to the H otel T rinacria withladders and ropes .

E nroute on thebalcony of a ruined bui lding two l i tt le chi ldren werecrying for help . T he bui lding seemed ready to co l lapse at any moment .S econd Mate R ead , of theA fonwen, did not hesitate. T he children weredirected to lower a string with a stone tied to it . T hey understood

,and

pretty soon a pieceof stone was coming down .

M eantime R ead p laced a ladder against a lower balcony . T hen he52

F R O M T H E L I P S O F S U R V I V O R S . 53

turned to oneof h is seamen, who was standing by, and said : Now then,S mith . Doresaadds

“I shuddered . I t seemed l ike certain death . S mith turned h is quid

in his mouth, and without a word went up the ladder to the first balcony .

T hen, to the string which had been let down by the children, he attacheda l ight line, which the chi ldren hauled up and p laced around one of thestandards at the top of the balcony .

R E A CH E D BA L CO N Y BY R O P E .

By this means S mith hauled up a -inch mani la rope. H e thentook off h is boots and in a trice was shinning up the rope beside the

crazy ruin. I held my breath . I have read of many brave deeds, but Inever heard of one braver than S mith ’

s . W hen he reached the top ofthe balcony he leaned over and shouted : ‘

W hy, there’

s a ton of them uphere I can’t manageallof them myself. ’

Captain O wen turned to R ead . I t was enough . Ina second R eadwas shinning up the rope hand over hand . W e watched him with fearclutching our hearts .

“T herewas a S igh of rel ief when we saw him standing beside S mith

at the top of the building, which seemed to be rocking to its fal l everysecond . T hem enaloft soon got to work .

“O ne of Captain O wen’ s apprentices rendered great assistance. I

stood at the foot of the ladder to prevent its sl ipping. T he momentswere fly ing. W e did not know how soon the who le thing would collapse.

“A n I tal ian workman stood staring atus . I begged him to lend a

hand, but his face only assumed a more vacant expression, if that werepossible, and wewere left to do thework ourselves .

“R ead and S mith made thei r hawsers fast . T hen, one by one, they

lowered the cowering creatures who had been awaiting death . F romthat was lowered tentimes , each timewith a chi ld

oose the sai lors had formed .

T hen came an old woman, who was very stout . W e had a greatdeal of trouble to get her down, but managed it at last . T here was one

54 F R O M T H E L I P S O F S U R V I V O R S .

man among the crowd of survivors . S mith threatened to throw h im oil

the bui lding unless he helped to lower the woman.

“A t last thebraverescuers camedown on therope themselves . T hey

had saved twelve peop le from certain death . T hey worked as cool ly as ifthey had been on the ground . T hey had been in imminent danger oftheir l ives, yet when they came down they quite resented our congratuAlations .

W O M A N S A W E D F R E E .

T herewas other work forus nearby . W eheard cries from a womanburied to thewaist in the ruins of a shop . T hebuildings round herwereblazing. S lowly but surely the cruel flames were creeping nearer to her.

Could shebe saved ? Captain O wen’ s sharp command sent R ead rushingto the B lake, a ship moored at the quay . Ina few minutes hewas backwith a saw . H eclashed through theflames andbegan with frantic energyto saw through the plank that held thewoman fast . W ewaited in terrible suspense.

“T hen, w ith rel ief, we saw the endof the p lank fall away andR ead

came through the flames bearing the rescued woman in h is arms.

“Just then an ofl‘icer cameup and asked to what ship these menbelonged, and said he would send anaccount of their splendid bravery toh is government , and hoped they would recognize i t .

‘

M eantime, ’ he added, ‘I can only thank the men for their heroic

eff orts . ’ A t this moment we heard cries from back of the H otel T rinaeria, which had been left standing . W e saw S ignor Cogi on a narrowledge and rescued him .

“A fter rescuing others the party returned to the A fonwen, loaded a

boat with food and returned to the shore to distribute i t . Captain O wenleft me in chargeof theboat whi le he carried out the distribution. W hi leI was guarding it five I tal ian so ldiers came up and tried to seize it inorder to escape to the mainland . I knew it was our only hope, so Ithreatened to shoot the first man who touched it . T hey madeoff .

“T herewerefrom twenty to thirty shocks during the day. Prowling

among the ruins were panic-stricken fugitives and escaped pri soners, thelatter looting . I saw wretches hacking off the

’fingers of the dead to get

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56 F R O M T H E L I P S O F S U R V I VO R S .

T uesday afternoon we left on theA fonwenforNap les . I t has been

said that navigation of the S trait of M essina has been rendered unsafe. I

should like to correct that statement . I saw several vessels go throughM onday night .

“T here i s no doubt vast changes havebeen brought about in thebed

of the strait . T he A fonwen was lying at anchor in forty—five fathomsof water. W hen she weighed anchor Captain O wen found there wereonly thirty fathoms. A s to the residents of M essina, I cannot say theydid much to help . T hey seemed to be comp letely panic-stricken, buttheir need is great and their distress appal l ing. H aving escaped deathmyself I can speak feel ingly forthe help less residents of M essina .

”

L I K E T H E BU R S T I N G O F B O M B S .

A young doctor named R oss i gave a vivid account of his experiences . H is escape was miraculous, and by his calmness and energy hewas able to rescue others from imminent death . T he doctor was preparing to leave M ess ina by an early train M onday morning, the day ofthe disaster.

“S uddenly the profound si lence was broken by anextraordinary

noise l ike the bursting of a thousand bombs,

”he says . “

T his was followed by a rushing and torrential rain. T hen I heard a sinister whist l ingsound that I can l iken to a thousand redhot irons hissing in water. Suddenly therecameviolent rhythmic movements of theearth , and thecrashing down of nearby wal l s made m e real ize the awful fact of the earth !

quake. F al l ing glass,bursting roofs and a thick cloud O f dust added to

the horror of the s ituation,whi le the extraordinary double movement

,

rising and fal l ing at the same time, crumbled wal ls and imperiled mylife

I rushed into the room where were m y mother and sister and witha rope which

,fortunately

,I had with m e

,I succeeded in rescuing them .

I was al so successful in getting out of the house a number of other persons who had given themselves up for lost . T hen some so ldiers cameandhelped m e, and together we dragged forth several women and chi ldren from the tottering wal ls of a hal f—destroyed palace nearby. A few

seconds later this bui lding was entirely demo l i shed .

F R O M T H E L I P S O F S U R V I V O R S . 57

T here were scenes of indescribable horror in the streets and squaresthrough which my party made i t s way.

”

A nother survivor says“I was thrown out of bed. T hen the floor of my room co l lapsed and

I fell into the apartment under me. H ere I found a distracted womansearching for her sister and son, whom she found dead . W e remainedin the ruins for twenty-four hours . alone, without food or drink . W e

’madearough shelter of boards to keep O ff the rain.

“O ur ears were assai led with the cr ies and moans of the wounded .

T hese sounds abated somewhat during M onday night . S ti ll no one

came to our assi stance. W e were as in a tomb , with the bodies of ourchi ldren bes ideus . W e could see no one, but every time sounds wereheard from the street therewould come an outburst of piercing cries forhelp from the injured pinioned in the wreckage.

“T uesday morning we ventured forth and were takenaboard a ves

sel in the harbor, on which wewent to N ap les . M essina was entirely destroyed . W e passed over streets that were vast crevasses and cl imbedover great mounds of ruins and wreckage that wereall that remained ofthe fines t palaces of M essina .

”

H e arrived in R ome half covered with burns . H is wifewas c lothedin l itt leelse than counterpane.

H O T E L W H I R L S A R O U N D .

A mong others whose tragic tales wrung the hearts of his l i stenerswas E dward E ll is, an E ngli sh visi tor at M essina.

H is story, as he himself tells it, i s as fo l lows“I was on the second floor of the H otel T r inacria, he said . W hen

the earthquake came I was inbedasleep . I t shot m e out on the floorand then turned the floor over on top of m e. I managed to crawl outfrom under, with practical ly nothing on, and made a frantic rush for thedoor

,but found it impossible to O pen.

“I gave myself up for lost . B oth floor and ceiling went crashing

down and I was left hanging to the door. T he room seemed whirl ingeat gaps O pened in the walls . A moment laterthewhole structure fel l . I landedon a heap of

58 F R O M T H E L I P S O F S U R V I V O R S .

mattresses , clothing and furnitureandthough much bruised was not disabled

R ight in front of me in the black darkness I heard moaning. I putout my hand and touched something horrible. W hen I drew it backmy hand was colored crimson. S omeonewas dying there, but I was unable to aff ord any help .

G radual ly I worked my way out from the debri s of the fal len hotelandfinal ly was able to ri se to my feet . I began to walk over ruins, butthe earth was sti l l heaving, and several times I fel l . T he thick dust wasalmost suff ocating . A ll around rose cries for help . T wo m en rushedpast me so frantical ly that I was again thrown down, but I got up andstruggled on.

W A L K S O V E R B O D I E S .

I felt that constantly I was treading on bodies, and perhaps onl iving persons . O nce the body of a woman fel l down on m e from somewhere overhead .

“I suppose I had walked two hours when, suddenly, I went waist

deep into water . A man helped me out and pointed the direction of Marina . Butmy troubles werenot over. T hewi ld figureof a man p lasteredwith mud rose up before m e and barred my passage. H e was clearlymad , and only after a desperate struggle did I get away from him .

“N ext I found myself in a street where every housewas on fire, and

I saw no way out unti l a bui lding fel l down and smothered the fire suffis

ciently in one place to aff ord m e a path over the rubb i sh .

“E ven then an enormous heap of wreckage lay in my way, which

for some time I vainly tried to surmount . Inmy endeavors I fell into adeep hole, but in it I found somepieces of furnitureand hal f broken steps,which helped me at last to cl imb to the top of the heap .

W eakened and exhausted ,I s l ipped and began rol l ing helplessly

down the hi llside, and was unable to stop unti l I want splashing into thesea. T his was the endof my troubles , for I was picked up and takenaboard the steamer.”

CH A PT E R I V .

G R O U N D S P L I T U P E V E R YW H E R E — R E S CU E D H I S R E L A T I V E S .-O L D

M A N’

S CH A R I T Y.— B O A T I N QU E E R P R A N K s .

— I M PR I S O N E D F O R

F O U R D A YS .— A CT R E S S S A V E S S O L D I E R — L O N G CR Y O F A N G U I S H .

ACH I L L E CA R R A R A

, agent of the G eneral S team N avigation Company in M essina, gives the following account of his experiences,

which throws somenew l ight on the circumstances of the disasterF rantic with terror I shouted formy wife, my chi ldren and my ser

vants, andassembled them under the arch of the window. T he houserocked, but i t remained erect . W e dressed in darkness and blindingdust, whi le everything heaved about us . W e staggered down the reeling staircase to the street .

“T he street was choked with the ruins of the surrounding bui ldings ,

and masonry was falling. T he injured were shrieking from their tombsbeneath the wreckage

,and the ground was sp l it up everywhere. H or

ror was pi led on horror, and inky blackness pressed upon us with hereand there a flame shooting out from among the wreckage.

“A t daylight we found our way to the harbor, where the t idal wave

had thrown the water I 4 feet above the quay and broken every vesseladrift . T he harbor was fullof wreckage, casks and capsized skiff s . F oursteamers, which had been flung on the quay, had been refloatedas the

great wave receded,andwerehanging by their anchors . T hey werethe

E lro, Drake, V arez and another . W e hai led theDrake, and were takenaboard and well attended to .

“Later the captain of theDrake sent a party with me to rescue my

relatives,who l ived in the north endof M essina .

“T heBritish consulatewas found to be a meredust heap . I located

what hadbeen my brother’s house, and after digging forhours wi th ourhands succeeded in breaking our way through the fallen masonry, rafters and broken furniture. W e rescued my brother, his wife and childand 18 other persons . W e found no traceof my father, mother, grand

59

80 G R O U N D S P L I T U P E V E R YW H E R E .

mother, si ster or aunt , andal l must have been crushed under the ruinsof the three houses . ”

Carrara adds that during M onday night two fresh and terr ibleshocks razed to the ground what was left of the town.

”

O ne o ld man on the streets of N ap les was carrying a l itt legirl in hisarms . T he chi ld was covered with blood .

“I s that your chi ld ?” he was

asked .

“N O ,

”he rep lied .

“Yesterday I found her on the pavement inM ess ina . I picked herup and cared for her. N o one claimed her andI couldn’ t abandon her. I have had her in my arms ever since. W iththis touching exp lanation the o ld manbecame obl ivious to h is questionerand everything around him .

T he S erapin took to N ap les records of numberles s tragedies . F amil ies separated, mothers moaning and crying for their dead chi ldren, hus

bands and wives lost to each other,or a sole survivor wishing that he had

not been spared . T here was one girl on board the steamship , herclothing tattered and torn, who had saved a canary b ird . S he was amusic hali singer and had clung to her pet throughout the terriblescenes of devastation. T he bird was the only happy thing on board thevessel .

T he stories told by theseunfortunate refugees are a lmost unbelieva

I M P R I S O N E D F O R F O U R DA YS .

A soldier named E mi l io de Castro relates that on S unday , the daybefore the disaster, he was taken sick andwas sent to the mi l i tary hospital . E arly M onday morning he was awakened by a tremendous roaring sound . H e felt himself fal ling and thought he was in the grip of anightmare. I t seemed to him that he had awakened in hell

,for the air

was fi lled with terrifying shrieks . H e soon real ized , however, what washappening . H is bed struck the floor below and he was sti ll on it . I t

paused a moment and was again precipitated . H e struck thenext floor,

but this gave way at once, and thus man andbed came down from the

fifth floor of the hospital to theground . T he soldier was not injured .

A fter being impri soned four days Deputy N icolo Pulei ’s wife wasextri cated from the ruins , and i t i s hoped she may survive. H er young

G R O U N D S P L I T U P E V E R YW H E R E . 61

niece also was brought out al ive, but died soon afterward . M en

searched long for the Deputy, whose voice was heard up to W ednesdaynight cal l ing for aid.

A n infant c lothed in a l itt le night shirt was rescued well and uninjured after having laid four days on a square yard of flooring ina h ousethat was otherwise entirely demo l ished .

T he A rchb ishop of M essina was found al ive in the ruins of hispalace.

T he M arquis de S emmolawas bur ied in the cel lar of his residence,but found a larder and kept himself al iveunti l he was rescued .

T he M other S uperior of S t. V incent M i l itary H ospital , at the ri skof her own life, aloneandunaided , saved Co lonel M inicci andhis daughter from the ruins of their home.

F lora Parini , an actress, lying hal f buried in wreckage, heard the

voice of a l ieutenant of arti l lery c lose at hand , who had recognized her,crying

“S ignorina, save me! Cal l some one to rescue us . Don’t leave

me. I was at the theatre last night , and I app lauded your singing. I

have a mother ; don’ t leaveme to die.

”

A CT R E S S S A V E S S O L D I E R .

T he woman was eventually dug out , ledher rescuers to where thesoldier was pinned down,

and he, too, was saved .

T he sufferings of persons buried in the ruins was awful to contemp late. Dead bodies have been found which bear mute testimonyto the torture endured before death . S everal died gnawing their armsand hands

, evident ly del irious from pain and hunger. O ther bodies hadparts of shawls and clothing in the mouths. O ne woman’

s teeth werefirm ly fixed in the leg of a dead babe.

S ignor V idala, the proprietor of a local newspaper, relates that heng the printing of an edition when the shock came. H e

out to the street before the building collapsed , andto the Place Cavour, which had been transformed into

62 G R O UN D S P L I T U P E V E R YW H E RE .

anguish seemed to rise from the city, then there was comparative silence for a short whi le.

T heworst shocks were over by 6 o ’clock .

V idalamade h is way to his home, and found his fami ly under theruins . A s he was tel ling his tale a wi ld-looking individual , in strangeclothing

,cameup to the correspondent and the newspaper proprietor.

“I a lso am bereft of al l my fami ly,” he interrupted .

“I now am

alone in the world l ike you, V idala.

”I t was evident that this man was

half crazy. H e had saved a daughter from the ruins, but his two sistershad been killed . L ater he died of h is injuries .

S ignor S erao, owner of the house in M essina where E ngl ish Consul O gston resided, escaped . T he part of the house where S erao liveddid not fal l . H e rushed out after thefirst shock, and met S tuart K . L up

ton, the A meri can V ice-Consul, in the street . S ignor S erao says

“I t is impossible for the wi ldest imagination to picture anything

more terrific than the destruction of M essina. Cl imb ing over brokenbeams, shattered wal l s and broken furniture, we finally reached the spotwhere the A mericanConsulate had stood .

“T he Consular building was about three stories high . I t had en

tirely collapsed . W e could hard ly believe our eyes . M r. L uptonclimbed over the ruins cal l ing out ‘

Cheney l Cheney !’ Confident thattheConsul would answer him ,

he said to me‘

Daylight has not come yet and that is why I cannot see him,but

he must be somewhere in thewreckage.

’

F R A N T I C S E A R CH F O R T H E CH E N E YS .

O ur search became more and more feverish, but as timeworeonand it was sti ll unsuccessful we final ly realized its hopeles sness . W e

saw it would be impossible to reach even the bodies of the unfortunateCheneys . In addition to the col lapse of the Consulate a neighboringbuilding had been precipitated upon the Consular ruins and the wholewas avast mass of wreckage.

“T ouched by M r. L upton’

s dispair I tried to console him, saying

that undoubted ly the Cheneys had been vouchsafed the mercy to die

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64 G R O UN D S P L I T U P E yE R Y W H E R E .

A ferryboat moored at one of the docks seemed suddenly to bethrown high into the air. I t landed on top of the dock , and was lefthanging there by the receding waters . T his was the first intimation ofthe crew that anything had happened .

T he captain of the boat says a huge cloud of dust obscured the city.

W ith dawn came an overwhelming picture of devastation. T he captainand his men landed and tried to make their way into the city, but thefal len bui ldings and the twisted streets made progress impossible.

I N T R E A S U R E S A V E D .

T he entire local treasury O f the Mes sina branch of the Bank of

I taly, some was saved andtaken on board an I tal ian warship .

T he rescuers at M essina were rapid ly exhausted . T he fires ragedlong, and there was no water with which to combat the flames . Manyof the people refused to leave the ruins of their houses . T hey clungto the sites of their homes, crying out that their only safety was in fidel~

i ty to the wrecks of their houses . F orce often was necessary to get

them to the ships in the harbor.A dispatch from Deputy F el ice at M essina said“O rganize a squadron of vo lunteers for rescue work . S end us

food, forweare dying of hunger . A number of the survivors are leaving to-day forCatania. R eceive them with love and fraternity . I t i s theduty of every fami ly in Catania to shelter a fami ly from M essina.

O nly two members of themunicipal Council of M essina survived thedisaster .

T he bluejacket s from the R ussian warships at M essina performedvalorous service. T hey risked their lives recklessly in the work of extricating the wounded .

A roll-cal l of the E ighty-ninth R egiment of I nfantry reveals thatthe organization has only ten surv ivors . A man named R oberto

, the

sole survivor of his family, became mad from grief in Catania and com ~

m itted suicide.

L i ly W olffsohn, an E ngl i shwoman, collected some graphic stories

from the survivors . O ne man, employed by a G erman cotton firm inMessina. said

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G R O U ND S P L I T U P E V E R YW H E R E . 6S

M essina is utterly destroyed . N othing remained when I left butpart of the citadel . A few so ldiers were the bare survivors of thewholegarrison, and here and there a horse is seen asleep standing erect .

“W hen the first shock awoke me, I l i t my lamp, but all was quiet,

andI turned to s leep again. S uddenly,fresh shocks occurred inviolent

and terrific repetition. I rose, but the housewas swaying and my door;jammed . I tore sheets from thebedand made a rope and lowered myself from the window to the street . A n I tal ian family of five personsescaped from the house with the aid of my rope.

A T T E M P T S A T R E S CU E U S E L E S S .

N o sooner werewe in the street thanthe house co l lapsed . I triedto help in thework of rescue, but it was useless . A ll day I wandered inthe wrecked streets . N 0 food could be got , and I had only a few nutsto eat.

“T he head of my firm

,who lost h is brother

,had to go through the

streets begging for bread for his wife and chi ldren. T here was no organization in the work of rescue. T he M essina prison was destroyedand the warders ki lled , but most of the conv icts escaped, and theyprow led among the ruins, robb ing and murdering . T hey cut off thefingers of the dead andwounded to take the rings, some of them singing songs as they p l ied the knife.

“A R ussian vessel lying in the harbor was thrown into the streetby the tidal wave and other vessels foundered . T he railway l ines sankinto the ground . T he square known as Campo S anto collapsed andsank and only the summits of a few ruined bui ldings sti ll emerge from the

wreck . T he fugitive population when I left was camping near the har~bor.”

CH A PT E R V

E Y E -W I T N E S S E S T E L L O F H O R R O R S — S L E E P I N G W H E N CR A S H CA M E .“

S O L D I E R'

S M I R A CU L O U S E S CA P E — P U B L I C B U I L D I N G S G O N E .

L O O T E R S S H O T D E A D .

M E . K A R A L E CH ,a H ungarian prima donna, who was in M es

sina at the time of the earthquake, gives this account of herthri lling escape from a horrible fate:

“I hadappeared at the O pera thenight before in ‘

A ida, ’ and had returned to H otel T rinacria, retiring to rest at but could not s leep .

A s 1was lying awake I suddenly felt the hotel rock and col lapse.

“I leaped from a w indow,

breaking both arms in the fal l . Despitethe pain

,which I scarcely felt , I picked m y self up and started running

toward the shore.

I was j oined by a number of other frightened refugees , al l staggering bl ind ly on

,uttering cries and lamentations .

“

U ltimately wearrived at the beach . when we were taken on boardthe I talian crui ser P iemonte and conveyed to Palermo .

”

A woman who escaped unhurt to ld of her exper ience:“W e were all sleeping in my house when we were awakened by an

aw ful trembl ing which threw us out of our beds . I cried out that it wasan earthquake,

and cal led to the others to save themselves,whi le I

quick ly pushed a few clothes into a val i se. T he shocks continued,seem

ing to grow stronger . T he wal ls cracked andmy bureau sp l it in twoand then crashed to the floor , nearly crushing m e. M y hands trembledso that I could scarcely open the doors .

“T o increase the terror a rainstorm

,accompanied by hail

,swept

through the broken windows . F inal ly , with my brother and s ister, Isucceeded in gaining the street , but soon lost them in the mad race ofterror-stricken people, who surged onward , uttering cries of pain anddistress . During this terrible fl ight balconies , chimneys and ti les showered down upon us continuously . Death ambushed us at every step .

I nstinctively I rushed toward thewater front,transformed into a muddy

,

66

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E Y E-W I T NE S S E S T E L L O F H O R R O R S .

found two or three thousand utterly ferrified peop le assembled . N oneof us knew what to do . W e waited in an agony of fear. M en andwomen prayed, groaned and shrieked. I saw one of the b ig bui ldingsfronting on the square co l lapse. I t seemed to m e that scores of personswere buried beneath the ruins . T hen I lost consciousness and I rememherno more.

”

A . J . O gston, British V ice-Consul , escaped with hi s daughter , butwas bad ly hurt .

A t the first shock,he said, my wife rushed to a cot and snatched

up the chi ld . A s we were passing a bui lding a balcony fel l and killedmy wife. By a miracle the chi ld escaped unhurt .

“I rushed to the municipal square, where 50 peop le had gathered ,

andwe ran mad ly forthe open country, balconies, co lumns and chimneysfal ling around us in a terrifying manner. T he members of our partywere struck down half a dozen at a time, and when we reached a p laceof safety only four of the party remained . T he others undoubted ly werekilled .

”

W O U N DE D S O L D I E R’

S M I R A CU L O U S E S CA P E .

A wounded so ldier relates this thril ling tale of h is miraculous escape. Between his tears for the fate of h is less fortunate companionshe said

“T he spectacle was terrifying beyond words . Dante’ s ‘

I nferno ’

gives you but a faint idea as to what happened at M essina. T he firstshock came before the sun had risen. I t shook the city to its very foundations . I mmediately the houses began to crumble. T hose of us whowere not ki l led at once made our way over undulating floors to the

street . Beams were crashing down through the rooms, and the stairswere equal ly unsafe.

I found the streets blocked by fal len houses . Balconies, chimneys ,bell towers , entirewal ls hadbeen thrown down. F rom every sideof m earose the screams and moanings of thewounded . T he peoplewere halfmad with excitement and fear . M ost of them had rushed out in theirnight clothes . Ina l i tt le while we were al l shivering under a torrentialdownpour of rain. E verywhere there were dead bodies

,nude

, disfig

E Y E W I T N E S S E S T E L L O F H O R R O R S . 09

uredand mutilated . Inthe ruins I could seearms and legs moving helplessly . F rom every quarter came piteous appeals for aid .

T he portion of the town down near thewater was inundated by th e,

tidal wave. T he water reached to the shoulders of the fugitives andswept them away.

T he City H al l, the Cathedra l and the barracks crumbled,and

churches, other publ ic bui ldings and dwel l ings without number were literally razed to the ground . T here were 200 customs agents at the barracks ; only 4 1 of them were saved . A t the railroad s tation only eightout of 280 employes have been accounted for.

“M any of those who succeeded in escaping with their lives are in

capable of relating their experiences coherent ly. I questioned all whowere in a condition to talk . M ost of them told the same s tory. T heysaid the first thing they knew they were thrown out of bed, and amidcrashing cei l ings andfal ling furnituremanaged to make their way to thestreet . T hen, in the blackness of night and amid a pouring rain thatadded to their horror and distress , they rushed blind ly away amid thecrash of tumbling bui ldings and the shrieks and groans of those buriedin the ruins. M any, whi le trying to escape, were struck down by fallingbalconies and masonry, and still many others lost their reason and areto day wandering aim lessly in the open fields outside the city or up anddown the ruined streets they knew sowell.

L O O T E R S A R E S H O T DE A D .

T he looters and the robbers were shot dead by the rifles of thesoldiers.

”

But perhaps the best account of the terrible scenes in M essina andits neighboring towns fo llowing the disaster is furnished in the accountsof—theM arquis d i Ruvolito, the first written from Catania on the secondday following theearthquakeand thenext on the succeeding day.

T he M arquis said :“I h ave just returned from M essina . T he city i s abso lutely de

stroyed . T h e spectacle is a terrifying one, the ruins are a prey to the

70 E Y E -W I T N E S S E S T E L L O F H O R R O R S .

and devoured al l that the shocks had Spared . N early the entire population is buried in debri s .

‘

T he ca lculations p lace the total number of survivors at only‘

T hus the dead at M essina and i ts environs alone wi l l reach the

stupendous figure of nearly 100 000.

“H elp from the outer world is at last beginning to reach the stricken

city. T he B ritish armored cruiser S ut ler steamed in from M alta and

was fol lowed by the R ussian batt leships S lava and T saritsa and the armored cruiser A dmiral Makaroff . T he officers and m enof the two nav iesgaveevery possibleaid , yet thei r task i s a fearful one.

“Under the pelting rain open—air hospitals arebeing instal led inwhat

were once the streets of the town. T he sights on every hand are sotragic it i s almost impossible to describe them adequately in terms of thehuman language. T he utmost depths of anguish and suffering seem to

have been reached and imagination stands aghast before the effect of thiscatastrophe.

G A R R I S O N P E R I S H E D .

T hegarri son in M essina perished inthe ruins and persons who sur

vive unhurt cannot escape from the vast smo ldering tomb inwh i ch theirkinsmen,

wives,husbands

,parents and children lie. T he sea i s c losed to

them forwant of ships and they are suffering from the cruel extremitiesof hunger and thirst .

“H ere and there they can be seen searching eagerly for some mor

sels to eat or water to drink , but the heaps of dust and debri s yield themnothing . A t every turn some lamentable scene meets the eye, m enandwomen half naked andterribly injured imp loring rel ief.

“T he h ospital and chemists shops have disappeared and there are

neither drugs nor surgical instruments . T he G overnment official s fromCatania are doing their utmost . T he Catania fire brigade al so arrivedand is working with the R ussian sai lors to extinguish the fires .

“An I tal ian batt leship reached M essina to-day and landed seamen

and soldiers , whi le troops are on the way from Catania and N ap les .

“But i t wil l take at least a year to remove the dead from under the

ruins . T he catastrophe surpri sed the people while they were as leep

E Y E -W I T N E S S E S T E L L O F H O R R O R S . 71

many of the pr isoners escaped, so that a number of desperadoes are letloose upon the ruined city .

“T he custom house, rai lroad station and al l bui ldings and institutions

disappeared, not a single officia l or publi c functionary remaining .

“T he streets are so comp letely gone that it i s imposs ible to find one’ s

way about . T he offices of the Bank of I taly have beenwrecked , but thesafes inthe strong rooms remain intact with their treasure inthem .

S ome few dead have al ready been recovered from the ruins andburied inthe publ ic gardens . T he search for the wounded and injuredin the debri s is being v igorous ly prosecuted and there i s hope that evennow

,two days after the earthquake, further rescues may be made.

In his second letter, writtenon the day fo l lowing, M arquis di Ruvo l i to says :

“I am sending this message by motor car to Catania, as it i s sti l l

impossible to telegraph from M essina or theneighborhood .

“T heestimate of the total dead inM essina

,R eggio andal l Calabria

has ri sen toH A V O C W A S U N I V E R S A L .

T he disaster exceeds all efforts of imaginationandthe havoc i s sovast anduniversal I scarcely know how begin to describe it . T he horrorof i t al l i s

,indeed

,beyond words .

“W hen I enter the ruined area from Catania I findmyself a prey to

indescribable emotions . T he spectac le that greets the eye here i s beyond the imagination of Jules V erne. T he Corso Cavour at M essina isnothing but a huge mound of stones . In company with a deputy I endeavoredto exp lore i t . I t was 5 o ’clock in theevening and al ready dark ,and rain was fal l ing . W e first saw a homeless family sitting on a heapof stones . T hey were half naked andhudd led together under a singleumbrel la . W e asked them to come with us and be rel ieved , but theyrefused, saying they preferred to die on the ruins of their home.

wh itefhairedwoman was shivering on the ground ,bed quilt . S he begged for help, saying she hadPelolo T heatre. S he was barefootedand practin

H E YE W I T NE S S E S T E L L O F H O R R O R S .

to comewith us to the station, but shewould not go save on conditionwe brought her a pair of shoes . T his was impossible.

“W e were then forced to return on account of darkness, and, tired

andhungry, we arrived at the station. I t was thronged with a half-mad ,terrified crowd . T here was no water and nothing to eat and nowhereto sit down.

T W E N T Y R O BB E R S S H O T .

N umbers of peasants from surrounding vi l lages have flocked intotown to rob the corpses and sack the ruins . T he authori ties have ordered that theseghouls, when found, be immediately shot . T wenty werethus executed yesterday, and one wretch was discovered by a R ussiansai lor in the act of cutting off a finger from a corpse for the sake of aring

,and was shot with a revo lver . M artial law has been proclaimed .

“T he surv ivors were awakened from their sleep by the disaster and

ran unclothed into the streets . S ubsequent ly they were compel led tocover themselves with anything they could find . T he results would inother circumstances beludicrous, someof themenbeing clothed in skirtsand bodices and some of the women in mil itary uniforms , while othersof both sexes have nothing but blankets wrapped round them .

“H ere among the ruins I encountered an acquaintance, Baron di

S cotti . H e was covered with mud . H ewore a pair of white undergarments, an opera hat and wooden sabots. I met a survivor of an I talianfami ly named Bonanno . H e carried a dead chi ld in h is arms and appeared to have lost his reason. S everal people were literal ly strickendumb by the catastrophe

,but their si lence was counteracted by the

groanings from thewounded who still linger invi sible, but not inaudible,beneath the ruins .

“H elp is arriving constant ly from Catania and Palermo by sea to

rel ieve the thirst and famine. T he whole Calabrian shore foradistanceof nearly thirty miles was torn and twisted by theconvulsions of theearthandsea. N either bridges nor ferryboats exist

, all having been destroyed .

“T he town of V i lla SanG iovanni was destroyed

, andS cilla , P izzo andBagnara shared its fate. in each case the havoc of the earthquake beingcompleted by the outbreak of fire.

O ne fugi tive declared that the hi lls openedand swallowed up four

E Y E-W I T N E S S E S T E L L O F H O R R O R S . 78

towns . I t would be utterly imposs ible to attempt to give any kind of alist of dead, survivors and injured .

”

A nother thri l ling account was furnished by a newspaper man whoreached M essina afteran adventurous j ourney on foot through thewastedCalabria region.

“I arrived at last at M essina, with my legs almost dropping off , after

tramping thirty-one consecutive hours, covering a distance of forty-onemi les . M y nerves wi ll never recover from the atrocious impressions towhich they were subj ected , and my eyes wi llretain as long as they remainopen the vision of death and devastation which oppresses them. A

mournful silence covers the country l ikeafuneral pall.“I proceeded as far as Palmi by train, and thence afoot . S ix or

seven inhab itants accompanied me to T ropead, and I decided to reachR eggio at whatever cost . T wo or three railroad firemen, cut off fromhome while at duty by the catastrophe, were returning to seek news ofthe fate of their families . T hey preceded me, brandishing resinous ,smoky torches . W e marched in I ndian file through the tunnel fromPalmi to Bagnara, holding hands andstumbling over ballast heaps . T he

roof of the tunnel was cracked everywhere, and now and then rocks fell .W hole families were encamped around wood fires and smoking torches .

M any of them were wounded . Men, women and children, stupefiedbythecatastrophe and crouching among the stones , lookedatus with vacantglares, as if their thoughts werewandering.

BA G N A R A’

S M A YO R W A S S A V E D .

S ome distance along wecameupon families roasting seab irds whichhad been killed by the tempest and cast upon the beach . O thers hadthe strangest obj ects packed in sacks . Inreply to questions as to whathad happened at M essina and R eggio , they made vague and desolategestures, and continued to gazeat us l ike stalled oxen. A fter two hours ’

march we saw Bagnara, perched on the spur of a mountain overhangingthe sea .

“T he country house of theM ayor, on the summit of the rock , was

half tumbled into the sea, but theM ayor was safe. H ewas giving orders

74 E Y E -W I T N E S S E S T E L L O F H O R R O R S .

the town and surrounding country was iri ruins . Inone I saw tumbledbeds and disordered dining rooms . S eated on the broken wal l was a mansel l ing bread at exorb itant prices, amid a chorus of curses and maledictions

. A nother, demented , was trying to dig into the ruins with hisfingers .

“T he tunnel beyond Bagnara was impracticable. A nenormous por

tion of themountain had fal len and O bstructed the road . W ewere forcedto walk in the sand

,often up to our knees in water . Beyond the tunnel

the track was torn and the rai ls twisted . H uge rocks and dangerousmasses came rumbling down momentari ly . W e decided to cl imb the

mountain and advanceacross the ravines of brushwood .

“N ight fel l ; the rain was coming down in a deluge. M y guides

marched morewith their brains than their legs . I fo l lowed mechanical ly,though ready to drop . A t I I o ’clock we reached F avazzina, a ham letof 300 inhabitants . O nly seven persons remained and they were shivering under the shelter of a coup le of sheets stretched across two o l ivetrees . T hey asked us pitiful ly forbread , but we ourselves had not eatensince the start, and we knew not what to answer ; so we left them hopeless .

S A V E D B Y S O M E S A I L O R S .

A fter eleven hours wehad covered only twenty mi les, every stop at

the cost of the greatest exertions . O ur clothes were soaked and the

torches had burned out. A t S cyl la we decided to rest,but rest was im

possible. T he whole countryside,except to the north

,was comp letely

blotted out. W al ls were standing,but the interiors had col lapsed

,carry

ing down the sleeping occupants .

S ignor B irot , the Mayor of B rescia, in L ombardy was stopping atthe H otel T rinacria , in M essina

,and was buried under the ruins of the

bui lding for five hours . F inal ly,several persons approached the p lace

where he lay , but at that moment a fresh shock put them to fl ight .E ventual ly , a body of sai lors extricated him unconscious and took himaboard a ship .

S unday night S ignor B irot dined with a party of E ngl ish,F rench

andG ermans at the hotel,al l of whom per i shed .

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CH A PT E R V I .

R E G G I O V A N I S H E S I N T I DA L W A V E — W H E N I T F I N A L L Y E M E R G E D F E W

O F I T s P O PU L A T I O N S U R V I V E D .—N O W A N U T T E R R U I N .

“

F A CE O F CO U N T R Y CH A N G E D .

—A N A R CH Y .

BU T M essina, whi le by farthe greatest sufferer, was not the only citydevastated . T he gruesome rol l of the dead elsewhere in th e

stri cken region equalled , in the aggregate, if ittdidnot exceed that of thecity by the straits .

M ess ina had more property loss than any other one point . M oremen, women andchi ldren’

s lives were ground out there than in any otherci ty.

But that was only because M essina was themost populous town inthe stricken region— in that gory belt of death that stretched from the

heart of the i s le of S ici ly northeastwards under the S traits of M essinaand through the centreof Calabria, the most southerly of the provinces,or states, of the K ingdom of I taly .

InM essina, horr ibleas was the disaster, one person in tenescapedthe holocaust .

Inmany of the smaller towns and vi l lages within the range of manymi les, not a human being l ived to tell the talewhen the sunrose on thatmemorable 28th day of December, 1908 .

M essina ’s prominence in the annals of the disaster i s due morelargely to the fact of its great size and reputation throughout the worldthan to the completeness of it s destruction or to the proportionate lossof li fe.

N ext to M essina. the quaint and beautiful city of R eggio di Calabriawas the greatest sufferer . T his charming town

,the capital of the prov

ince of Calabria, lav nestled at the water ’s edge on the mainland , someeight miles or so to the southeast andacross the strai ts.

W hen M essina collapsed , steamships hasti ly put out to cross thestraits forhelp . H alf way over they met scarredandbattered ships fromtheother coast, carrying thenews that R eggio, too, hadperished.

R E G G I O VA N I S H E S IN T IDA L W A VE . W

Andthat before the terrible tidalwave that dashed from the O ppositeS icilian shores had engulfed the city and had buried beneath its foaming crest almostallof what had remained of the city’

s fifty thousand inhab itant

R eggio, before the shock, was a live and prosperous port, and oneof the most ancient ci ties of I taly.

I t was embalmed in the annals of history long before the Christianera, when it bore the name of R hegium .

Previous shocks of earthquake, especially thegreat oneof 1783, hadleft its scars upon the ancient palaces and the cathedral

,but unti l that

one terrible day in the Christmas week of 1908 i t still nestled in fanciedsecurity at the foot of grim M ontalto, which reared its vine-clad headalmost five thousand feet towards the heavens to the back of the town.

N O W A N U T T E R R U I N .

T o-day, the city is in utter ruin, ruin as complete as that whichwiped M essina off the map . Y es, worse! F or the tidal wave here sweptover the entire town, so deep that the bodies of fish were found, afterthe death-deal ing flood final ly had receded , as high up as the third floorsof a number of houses that were so sturdily bui lt that their shells at leastwere able to defy not only earthquake, but flood and flame.

Could any human beings be expected to survive that shock, thatflood

,that fiery visi tation that swept the sti ll dripping ruins ? Y et some

few l ived to tell the tale. F ew enough . But some.

Not a scene of horror at M essina but had its ghastly counterpart

T he tidal wave that swept into R eggio flooded the city to a depthof many feet above sealevel. S omeof the houses along thewater frontwere swept from their foundations and dragged out to sea.

T welve miles of the railroad near R eggio were destroyed .

T he tempest added to the terror of the scene.

T he few R eggio survivors wandered nude anddemented about theruins of the ci ty searching for food.

u R E G G I O V A N I S H E S I N T I DA L W A VE .

villas located on the heights alone escaped destruction. T he chateau ofR eggio was left a heap of ruins .

T he prison co l lapsed , and almost al l the convicts . estimated to number lost their l ives .

A group of travelers who were at the rai lroad station, awaiting thearrival of a train,

were crushed under the debris of the bui lding .

A llthe rai lroad stations in a radius of twelvemi les from R eggio weredestroyed .

T he sea front was entirely swept away— so thorough ly undulatedthat for days seamen fami liar with the coast from chi ldhood could notrecognize the place and believed that R eggio never had emerged fromthewaves .

Andyet there was much ground for thi s bel ief. T he ruins of R egg io final ly did emerge. But i t was ruins only . F ordays it was impossibleto approach the site by either seaor land .

F A CE O F CO U N T R Y CH A N G E D .

F ora distanceof twelvemi les from the city, roads , bridges and footpaths were destroyed . E ven the face of the country was changed . I t

was impossible to get into R eggio even with automob i les .

O nly a few thousands out of the entire population escaped death orinjury.

L ieutenant G eneral F iera D i Cossattoprompt ly ordered that all looters and robbers be shot on sight .

M artial law was a necess ity.

F or many hours what was left of R eggio was completely i solatedthrough interruptions to the telegraph and telephone and landslides thatobstructed the rai lways .

N onews of the stri cken city reached theoutsideworld untilmidnight,

andthen it came from M essina in the form of a dispatch wh icht a torpedoboat , flying at ful l speed along the coast of the peninsula, carried frompoint to point , always finding thewires down, until i t reached N i cotera,where the telegraph lines were found to be intact .

F rom th i s point thedi spatch was sent .A fter summari zing the immensity of the catastrophe the telegram

R E G G I O V A N I S H E S I N T I DA L W A V E . 79

ended with the announcement that Captain Passino,commander of the

station of torpedo boats , was buried under the debri s after having withother ofl‘

icials performed heroic work in trying to save others .T he Capucine monks at R eggio escaped death and did brave work

in rescuing the les s fortunate. O f the twenty-one nuns at the Conventof S anV incenzo di Pao la

,only seven remainal ive.

A tragic episodewas the rescue of Deputy Demetrio T ripepi, M ayorof the town. H is fami ly escaped

,but he disappeared and his chi ldren felt

certain he was buried under the ruins . T hey set to work to find theirfather and they strugg led with the ruins for twenty-four hours withoutrest and without food . O nly a miracle, they thought , could bring himback to them .

E ventual ly, however, the father appeared . H e was bad ly injuredbut sti l l al ive. T he j oy of the fami ly was not for long,

for the deputy diedsoon afterward . G iuseppe V alentino

,another member of the Chamber

of Deputies , also was among the dead .

H O T W A T E R G U S H E S F O R T H .

O ne young woman of R egg io was a pri soner for forty-eight hourson the fifth floor of herhome. S he cal led forhelp , which none dare giveher because of the unsafe conditionor the wal ls . F inal ly, when a fire

man braved the danger andbrought the g irl down, shewas found to havegone raving mad . H ermother and her father, two brothers and a sis ter,were lying dead in aroom beside her.

T he station master at R eggio says that immediately after the firstshock a chasm eighty feet widewas opened intheearth . F rom this theregushed forth a flood of boi l ing water, some jets r ising to the height ofanordinary house. M any injured persons who were inthis vicinity werehorr ibly scalded by the flowing stream .

A s the station master madehis way to a p laceof safety he saw humanlimbs sticking out from the masses of ruins . F renzied relatives stroveto free th eir dear ones from the fal len masonry, while shrieks from the

rushing hal f naked andbleeding through the streets,

T he sea int‘

mdated the suburbs of R eggio and destroyed countless

00 R E G G I O VA N I S H E S I N T I DA L W A VE .

acres of orange groves . T he smal ler houses of the peasants comp letelydi sappeared, the receding waters leaving them buried in mire.

Corpses were everywhere in the outskirts of the city . T he bridgenear Pel laro was carried off by the sea, as werealso entire sections of therailroad .

T he dead in R eggio were muti lated and distorted, their faces set inexpressions of infinite terror and their poor bodies shattered and misshapen. M any of the injured died later. O f those who survived manyappeared demented .

O neman who had but onearm came out of a ruined houseand starteda ghast ly dance. H e cried out that the who le thing was only a dream ,

th at R eggio was safe, andthat h is wife and chi ldren were uninjured andpeaceful ly sleeping in their beds .

A laborer who escaped relates that short ly before daybreak a deafening noise l ike the roaring of a hundred cannon was heard . T his wasfol lowed by the subsidence of the entire lower portion of the ci ty. A t

the same time the seaswept over thewater front . T he cathedral, all themunicipal buildings and the barracks and the beautiful palaces that linedtheCorso in amoment wereheaps of ruins .

A fter a brief period of paralysis, mental and physical , the work ofrelief began, but it did not take shape until the arrival of the K ing, dayslater.

S T A T E O F A N A R CH Y.

F or forty-eight hours the crazed survivors had s ignalled in vain topassing steamships. A ll rel ief was hurrying to M essina .

Barely fifty houses in R eggio remained standing,and the streets and

squares were filled with bodies, which were being devoured by cfoudsof ravens and crows .

A stateof most frightful anarchy prevailed .

M obs of ruffians roamed among the ruins, giving full vent to theirvi lest instincts . T hey were bent on pi l laging thewrecked jewelry storesandbanks and did not hesitate to shed theblood of those opposing them .

A few soldiers who escaped unhurt were impelled by an adm irablespirit of discipline to organize patrols on their own initiative. T hey en

R E G G I O V A N I S H E S I N T IDA L W A V E . 31

deavored to protect the property left intact, but the criminals foughagainst them fiercely .

T henumber of these criminals increased to such anextent that theso ldiers were forcedto fire on them . I t was only after a pitched batt le,in which severa l were shot and killed , that a semblanceof order was restored .

A llentrances to the ci ty, or what was left O f i t , were guarded by soldiers . M any of the surv ivors were lying exposed to the four winds ofheaven .

A s a precautionary measure against an outbreak of pesti lence, thebodies of persons ki l led in the earthquake were burned, and strong disinfectants strewnamong the ruins of the city .

T he troops set up field kitchens for baking bread in the streets .

S trong guards were p laced over clothing and provision stores, in orderto prevent their being pi l laged .

L ong term prisoners were embarked on board the battleship N apoliand others sent home.

T herescuers were forced to guard themselves against the onslaughtsof hundreds of dogs , raging with hunger, which sprang upon all comers.

T hey were shot down as fast as possible andnot a few of them weregrabbed by the starving survivors and used as food .

CH A PT E R V I I .

D E V A S T A T I O N I N S M A L L E R CI T I E S .

-T E R R I F I E D CR O W D S P R A Y .

L I V E D O N D O G M E A T .

— N o P A R T O F CA L A B R I A E S CA P E D .

— T E R

R I B L E F L I G H T O F B A N D O F R E F U G E E S .

L T H O U G H D E A T H ,the g rim reaper , garnered his richest harvest

at M essina and R eggio , the devastationover a vast stretch of territory was even greater in proportion to the population and propertyvaluation .

N ot a house in Castroreale, with more than population,es

caped . O nly a few of the inhab itants survived .

Catania,with population

,was bad ly damaged by both the

earthquake shocks and thetidal waves which swept the coast , but the lossof l ifewas not so heavy as in someof it s less fortunateneighbors .

Palmi, Casano , Cosenza, Bagbara, R iposto , S em inaria, S an G iovan

mi, S cyl la. L azzaro , Cannitella and al l the other towns bordering on the

straits were swept into ruin in that one instant , in many cases not a singleperson escaping .

T he gravest damage was done to publ ic bui ldings and churches atF loridia, N oto, Ch iaramonto, V i ttoria Paterno , T erranova , M arianopo l iand N aro .

A t M ineo there were several S hocks . A t A ugusta,which oncebe

fore was destroyed by an earthquake, the tidal wave wrecked the G overnm ent sal t works . T he pri soners emp loyed there mutinied , but weresuppressed .

A t Patti the shock was accompanied by a bl inding flash of l ight ,whi le serious havoc was wrought at Barcelona and many persons werekilled at M ontagano .

A t Caltanissetta, a S icil ian town of peop le, many houses weredemo l i shed . V ast crowds gathered in the parks and fi lled the churches

,

praying for del iverance.

S imilar scenes of panic were witnessed at M ineo , a town one hunt

dredmiles southwest of Catania .

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DE VA S T A T I O N IN S MA L L E R CI T IE S .

1500. T he injured exceeded that number. T he ruins were soon wrappedinflames .

Anentire regiment of infantry was drowned by the first tidal waveat. Palmi .

T he devastation over the entire district was m ore or less cornplete.

N 0 part of theprovinceof R eggio DeCalabria escaped .

Inmore than one town the shocks caused gas meters to explode,and disastrous fires resulted . T he flames helped great ly to swell thedeath l ist.

A t P izzo the dead numbered thousands.T he section around P izzo experienced another earth shock a few

days later, throwing thepeople into astateof panic . T he remains of thechurch in P izzo co l lapsed. A score of peop le within the bui lding had amiraculous escape.

A t S ant ’ E ufemia,a town of 6000 people, s ixteen miles northeast of

R eggio, the dead numbered I 500,the wounded exceeding that figure.

T he houses that were not destroyed soon were in flames.

Bagnara, on the coast to the north of R eggio, was practical ly wipedout, fire finishing thework of destruction. O ne report said that al l theinhabitants of Bagnara are dead .

”T he town counted about

people.

T E R R I B L E F L I G H T O F R E F U G E E S .

T o the destruction must beadded the fol lowing towns andvi llages ;Castellate, Polisten, Cinque Prondi, M amertina, S impoli, SanProcopio,P iz z iconi, S tefanconi, Catona and R osalo. T hese places are no more .

O ne survivor states that an express train on the road from R eggioto N aples was brought to a stop by the shock when about eighteen milesalong the road in its j ourney. T he passengers demanded that they betaken back to R eggio, where they found a scene of desolation. W hilesearching for friends fresh shocks occurred and practically all the passengers were ki l led .

T he tidal wave inundated a v il la at San G iovanni , 2500 feet backfrom the shoreline.

InCalabria, the reg ion around M onteleonewas most affected. T he

DE V A S T A T I O N I N S MA L L E R CI T I E S . So

villageof S tefanaconi, the inhabi tants of which numbered 2300,was pra

tically destroyed .

M onsignor M orab ito , the B ishop of M ileto, who distinguished himself inthe earthquake of 1905, did val iant work again. H e rushed intoplaces where the ruin was greatest , and brought aid andencouragementto all.

T he experiences of a band of refugees from M essina and R eggio,who made their way on foot into P almi , was distressing beyond words.

T hey succeeded in getting away from the S ici lian coast in sai lboats .

A fter a frightful experience in crossing the strait they landed on the

Calabrian coast . T here they weremet by haggard refugees from R eggio,andthe various groups of unfortunates j oined forces .

T ogether they painfully c l imbed the hi l ls . A t a certain point theyall turned to give a last look at the burning cities . T hey stood on the

mountain s ide p lunged in despair.

T E R R O R O F S U R V I V O R S .

A young priest who had escaped from R eggio advanced towardthe group , some 2000 persons inal l , and blessed them . T hen, turningin the direction of R eggio, he solemnly cal led down the bles sing of G odupon the desolated city.

“Peace the dying !” he cried . Peace to the dead ! M en, women

and chi ldren knelt on the ground and , rai sing their hands to heaven,

prayed forthe del iveranceof themultitude.

T he band then took up its broken and toi lsome march to Palmi ,where the refugees arrived ten hours later in a torrent of rain. T wo

thousand had set out in the beginning, but only five hundred ragged andemaciated wanderers reached their destinat ion . T he others had suc

cumbedon the awful j ourney and fal len powerles s by thewayside.

M ore appalling than the destruction of the towns and villages themthe terror of the survivors . T he spectaclewas horrible. T he

bleeding, ragged refugees were human S keletons, who stagbruised feet with eff ort and staring

86 DE V A S T A T I O N I N S M A L L E R CI T I E S .

T hose less affl icted told contradictory stories . E ach rememberedonly the tragedy of which he personal ly was the v ictim .

In the mountainous regions inland the population took refuge ingrottos and caves, where peasants and priests , so ldiers and persons ofgent le birth l ived in common. T heir bed was the ground , and firesburned to keep off wi ld animals . InA lbi alone 2000 peop le were homeless .

T heM arquis V incenzo G enoese, of Palmi , says hewas awakened bya tremendous roar . I t seemed as though thehouse was whirl ing around ,l ike thewings of a windmil l .

T hewal l of his dwel l ing cracked and th rough it came a cloud of suffocating dust . S tunned , but uninjured , the M arquis tried to escape tothe streets

,but the stairs had co llapsed . H e descended from a third

story window by a rope.

W alking,he says

,was difficult

,owing to the fact that the street s

were fi l led with debri s . H e assi sted in dragging from beneath the ruinseighty-six persons , al l of them dead . T he faces of every one of themshowed theagony they had suffered .

M any had their arms across their faces, as though to protect them

selves from the falling debris .

I t was necessary to release the prisoners at Palmi,andmany of them

succeeded in making their escape.

T I DA L W A V E’

S G R E A T F O R CE

T he M arqui s tried in every way to enter the town of R eggio,but in

E ven in Palermo , at the other endof S i ci ly , heavy shocks were feltfordays later . A fter oneof these therewas a general rush to the squaresand O pen places , accompanied by lamentations and shrieks of fear , although later inthe day the population invaded the churches andcarr iedout the images of the saints and sacred vessel s

,then marched in a pro

cessional through the streets , imploring a ces sation of the earthquake’sscourge.

A rel ief train dispatched toward M essina in the hope of aiding the

earthquake sufferers was forced to return, being able to go only with in

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88 DE V A S T A T I O N I N S MA L L E R CI T I E S .

T hesights witnessed in the stricken district will livelong in thememory of oneman, at least, who traversed the region immediately after thedisaster .

A fter tramping thirty-one mi les without food or drink , during wh ichtime he encountered throngs of the destitute and hungry, he arrived atM essina, footsore and tired . F rom there he went to Palmi and thenceto R eggio .

A t Bagnara he saw what was left of the populace roasting seabirdsfor food . T heM ayor’s house, he says, was perched high on arock overhanging the sea.

A t S cyl la he attempted to rest, but this was impossible, for everybui lding was in ruins .

Continuing, he says :“A few kilometers further on, Cannitello presentedastill more ter

rifying sight . A lmost at the same moment as i t was overthrown by theearthquake, it was swept by the sea. I t was no more.

“T he country was but a charnel house, whence a horrible stench

arose. A ll the houses were heaped into one pile of ruins, under whichthedead and wounded lay. T hesearound about was covered wi th household articles and children’

s p laythings.

T H E T O M B O F R E G G I O

F rom the ruins muffled voices calling for help reached us timeandtimeagain. I asked a fisherman thenumber of the dead and saved .

‘T he

survivors— perhaps five, six or seven ; the dead— perhaps two thousands,three thousands — who knows ? ’

he answered .

“T he once prosperous SanG iovanni was another awful sight . T he

tidal wave smashed the jetties and overturned the six moles and sweptthe entire passage. T he railroad station, the wireless station,

s ix ferrydocks and the hospital are al l destroyed . F our thousand inhab itantswere buried beneath theruins.

“T hewitnesses of that terrible night relate that the searoseup as

though l ifted by a subterranean explosion.

S urvivors here and there were huddled inwagons which were halfburied in the sand by violence. T hey were wounded andnaked . Nut a

DE V A S T A T I O N I N S MA L L E R CI T I E S . 85

soldier had arrived ; not a morsel of bread remained . W hen we foundthem they wereworn by a struggle over a few provi sions they haddiscovered in a freight car, but thesewere gone.

“F ifteen ki lometers further we entered the tomb of R eggio . T hose

who saw R eggio a few weeks before would not be able to restrain theirtears . I wept like a chi ld as I saw outspread beforem e, where the townhad stood , anocean of ruins . N othing was standing ; allwere dead ; allhad been killed . Palaces

,churches , theatres and banks no longer exist .

T he jetty with its two stations, had been carried away to sea. A

car was standing c lose at hand . A gainst this a girl of twelve had beenhurled . T he girl ’s head was cut off and floated out to sea; the body hungon the j amb of the car. T hewaters had poured down the V iaM arina,cutting off retreat and drowning thosewho had not al ready been ki l led .

T he two other main thoroughfares , the Corso G arabaldi and the CorsoA scheneuse were completely obstructed by enormous heaps of blazingruins . I was stunned at the comp leteness of the disaster.

“N ever in imagination have I felt so strong an impression of death ;

not a soul l iving in this smokin‘g charnel house; not a human voice. I t

was a terrifying s i lence. R uins werepiledupon ruins . A mong thedebri sI saw furnitureand women’ s c lothing. A house cut in two revealed threestories, a red, very red, parlor bed, in which a man lay dead , crushed bya fall ing beam ; a bridal chamber, from which the bride seeking to escape,also lay dead on the thresho ld ; another, aparlor, in which therewas nothing but a mirror andportraits of K ing H umbert and Count Cavour.

“I could bear no more. M y heart bursting with grief and horror,

I asked the eternal question : ‘

T he survivors— perhaps five or six thousand ; the dead , perhaps or who knows

“I obtained a rowboat and crossed under a beating rain with death

in its soul, the sinister strai t , sti l l agitated by the horrible crime it had

CH A PT E R V I I I .

A K I N G L Y K I N G T O T H E R E S CU E — QU E E N S A V E S CH I L D R E N — V I CT O R

E X P L O R E S R U I N S .

— N A R R O W L Y E S CA P E S D E A T H .

— H E L E N A H U R T

I N P A N I C — D U K E A N D D U CH E S S O F A O S T A JO I N I N W O R K O F

M E R CY .

AL L I taly

,paralyzed by themagnitude of the disaster that devastated

E astern S ici ly and Calabria, was fired to an earnest determinationto rel ieve suff ering andsuccor the distressed by the noble courage of itsK ing and Queen .

K ing V ictor E mmanuel and Queen H elena , as soon as they heardthefirst tidings of the calamity

,rushed to M essina onboard the batt leship

V i ttoria-E mmanuele. T hey disembarked immediately and made theirway into the ruined city .

A s soon as it was knownthat the K ing and Queenhadcome crowdsof the terror-str icken survivors of the earthquake swarmed around the

royal party,prostrating themselves inthemud andcrying aloud for pity .

T his receptionwas too much for the Queen, who almost fainted .

M any terrible stories were told to the K ing in connection with thework of rescue H is M ajesty lost l itt le t ime in l i stening to a recital ofdiffi culties . H e immediately joined a rescue party , and labored as uhrem ittingly as the others . H e personal ly extricated severa l injured persons pinned under the ruins .

T heQueen quick ly recovered her courage and fol lowed the exampleof her husband . S he devoted her attention principal ly to the l itt le chi ldren. S he rescued with herown hands a l itt le boy threeyears o ld

,bleed

ing from many cuts andwounds,and herself carried him to the deck ,

where she handed him over to members of the hospital corps .Peoplewept from emotion when they saw the K ing and Queen . T he

women threw kisses to herM ajesty. B oth virtually were carried in thearms of their subjects .

T he presenceof the K ing acted as a general inspiration. E venthe

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90 A K I N G L Y K IN G T O T H E R E S CU R .

where thevis it of the sovereigns imparted fresh impetus to the work ofrescue.

N or did he shirk or shun personal danger of the gravest kind .

W hi le standing in the streets of M essina hewas nearly buried underthe fal l ing wal ls of a wrecked bui lding .

A mid the gloomy and depressing horror which l ike a leaden weightO ppressed the land that by al l countries has been cal led the garden spotof E urope, two noble female figures stood out as guardian angels watching over the afflicted population. T hey wereQueen H elena and anotherH elena, the Duchess of A osta.

T he Queen gave the sufferers her tears, and with her own handsbound up their wounds, using her handkerchiefs when other bandageswere lacking . S he gave also of her world ly possess ions, including the

rings from her fingers .

T W O N O B L E F E M A L E F I G U R E S .

Publ ic opinion was serious ly concerned with regard to the safety oftheK ing and Queen and the danger from tottering wal ls . T he K ing frequent ly tried to persuade the Queen to rest or return to R ome, but shealways refused, dec laring that i t would break her heart to abandon herhusband in his labors forthe country in its anguish .

T he K ing was indefatigable.

H e showed wonderful activi ty and endurance. leaving no point inM essina unvi sited . H e supervised the entirework in the fal len city, andthe presence of his M ajesty infused new courage and energy into therescuers and the survivors

,hungry and wounded as they were. O ften he

was surrounded by a crowd of v ictims who , as though the sight of theK ing had restored their strength

,cheered enthusiastical ly and shouted

“W ehavea K ing ; wehavea protector .”

T he Duchess of A osta, who sti l l proud ly signs herself a Princess ofF rance, was performing miracles of love, pity and endurance at N aples ,where thewounded were arriving in great numbers . T his noble womangavenot only pecuniary help

,but nursed the injured with demonstrations

of affection . Chi ldren , robbed by a cruel fate of their parents andrelatives, found in thi s Princess 3 new and tender mother.

A KI N G L Y K IN G T O T H E R E S CU E .

K ing V i ctor E mmanuel later returned to R eggio . H e traversedthe ruins from oneendto the other, comforting the sufferers and cheering the rescuers . A t one point H is M ajesty came upon a man buriedup to h is waist in debris . T he K ing encouraged the unfortunate whi lethe so ldiers were digging him out. Inthemidst of the eff orts at rescuethe man cried

“S ire, I can wait for del iverance, but for G od ’

s sake give me foodand drink.

K I N G R E BU K E S P H O T O G R A P H E R S .

Meeting a group of photographers engaged in taking pictures ofthe sadscenes , the K ing chided them for their occupation.

“You had much better turn your efforts to succoring the affli cted ,said he.

Both H elena the Queen, and H elena the Duchess of A osta, wereborn on foreign soi l , but to-day thepeop leof I taly worship them for theirlove and devotion, and the unselfish service to the stri cken sufferersgiven by these two women of high l ineage has made them doubly dearto all I tal ians . T his devotion was particularly strengthened by the

Duchess conveying in her motor car many unfortunate litt le childrenfrom the bare hospitals to her royal palaceat Capodimonte.

T he Duke of A osta also visi ted Palmi andall the surrounding vi llages. T his section

,after M essina and R eggio, suffered more heav ily

thanany other . T he Duke said to oneof the aides with him“T he catastrophe indeed is .a scourge from G od. T he time has come

when it is no longer poss ible to think about thoseburied in the ruins . A ll

hopes of saving any of theseunfortunates, after the days that have elapsedsince the disaster must of necess ity be abandoned . A ll our efforts mustbe devoted to caring forthewounded survivors .

”

Queen H elena was injured at M essina . H er injuries were slight ,but the news caused a shock to all I tal ians , for H er M ajesty endearedherself wonderfully to her people by her heroic and self-sacrificing workamong

na while shewas there created apanic among thepatients in one of the improvised hospitals . T he Queen, who was close

94 A K I N G L Y K I N G T O T H E R E S CU E .

were crowding through the doors to.

reach the open. S he was caughtin the crush and painful ly but not serious ly hurt .

I t i s said that nobody in I taly envied K ing V ictor E mmanuel his errand of mercy more than did the P ope, who felt that his p lace was withthe stricken earthquake sufferers .

H aving been prevented from going there, H is H ol iness tried to keepin touch with the prevai l ing conditions as much as possible and offeredthe B i shops of the affected zone al l that he could give. H is gifts inmoney aggregated

T he P ontiff never regretted so much the loss of the l iberty he enj oyed as patriarch of V enice.

A DE S O L A T E B I R T H DA Y .

F o l lowing the desi re expressed by Queen H elena, the anniversaryof her birth , which was observed a few days after the great catastrophe,

was not attended by any of theusual festivities .

H er M ajesty is reported to have said that she wished to celebratethe day by working doubly hard for the Calabrian and S ici lian earthquake survivors

,whose sufferings she could not drive from hermind .

H er two daughters,P rinces s Yo lando and P rincess M afalda

,re

spectively seven and six years o ld, instead of buying birthday presents fortheir mother, turned over the contents of their money boxes to the re

lief fund .

T he l itt le Crown P rince, who i s four years old , not wi shing to beoutdone by his sisters

,parted with what has been his greatest delight , a

completed company of tin soldiers , of which he i s the commander H e

took his toys to hi s mother,saying : “

T his i s all I have; p lease send themto the poor chi ldren .

”

P remier G io litti voiced the gratitude of the people toward the firstwoman in I taly

,Queen H elena . T he reference to H er M ajesty was

greeted with prolonged applause in the I tal ian P arl iament , the membersof theChamber and M inisters r ising to their feet .

“I cannot possibly think of any kind of rej oicing , said the Queen,

when she gave orders to have her bi rthday celebration omitted ,

“wh i lethenation is suffering such terriblemourning .

”

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n A K I N G L Y K I N G T O T H E R E S CU E !.

ing the sew ing in the royal workroom niany stories were told about theearthquake, the l itt le P rincesses being particularly interested in the storyof an o ld woman looking about 100 years old , who refused to leave theruins without her l i tt le treasure.

S he was so obstinate that she had to be left to her fate. A nothercase is that of some sai lors who heard queer noises under the ruins, evi~dently something human, so they dug on to find a woman and a chi ldin a l itt le shed which had resisted the shock and fal l of debris

,together

with a goat, which yielded enough mi lk to keep them both alive. A t

last al l got so weak they could not l ift their heads, but all were al ivewhen rescued, having given warmth one to the other.

S everal chi ldren who were taken from the ruins in the first day whenhunger was not so pressing cried and kicked unti l favorite dol ls or toyswere found , and one youngster was found sti ll c lasping a T eddy bear inhis arms .

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CH A PT E R I X .

BU R Y I N G D E A D I N T R E N CH E s .

— QU I CK L I M E T O D E S T R O Y BoDrE s .—A N

I M P R E S S I V E F U N E R A L CE R E M O N Y .

—A M E R I CA N QU I E T S T H E I R

F E A R s .

—P R O P O S A L T O M O V E CI T Y.

F T E R comparative quiet had been restored and the I tal ian peoplehad recovered from the first shock of the horror, they faced most

terribleproblems of the future— yes , and of the immediate present .Inthefirst p lace

,though many thousands peri shed, therewereother

thousands, many of them maimed and incapacitated forwork , who mustbe transported , temporari ly at least , to some hab itable regions, clothedand fed.

N ext, to avoid a pesti lence, therewere yetmore thousands of bodiesto bedug from at least theupper part of the debri s and buried , or, inanyevent , destroyed by quick l ime.

T his latter expedient , which did much to avert an epidemic , wasproposed by the K ing himself, whi le face to face with the horror O f thesituation. H e fully real ized the menace of any other course andhimselfissued the orders for its use.

O f the bodies buried , hund reds were thrown into trenches andcmered with the destroying agent .

A most impressive funeral ceremony was witnessed near M essina,about a week after the disaster, when A rchb i shop Barrigo made his waythrough the town

,th rough the ruins of the city, to the cemetery at Mare

G rosso , and blessed a grave 100 feet wide and 30 feet deep , containing1300 bodies . T he dead were pi led one on top of the other , and coveredwith quick l ime.

T he prelate was followed to the cemetery by a large gathering ofsurv ivors whose lamentations mingled with the L atin words of the ser

vice and benediction.

e A rchbishop walked th rough the ruins and blessedthe military college, the barracks and the A rch

wrecked edifices as so many ceme97

98 BU R Y I N G I T A L Y ’

S DE AD I N T R E N CH E S .

teries . Under them were the corpses °of so ldiers, students, po l icemenandmonks .

W ith the exception O f S ant A ndrea A vel l ino, al l the churches inM essina were destroyed .

G R A V E F E A R S O F P E S T I L E N CE .

T he gravest fears were felt lest a pesti lence should break out , andaccordingly the government surrounded R eggio and M essina, as wel l asseveral of the smal ler towns, and would let none pass except those whoheld passes .

T his was rendered doubly necessary since shocks continued for daysafterward . A s many as tenanhour were recorded , causing many of theweakened wal ls to fal l .

T he I tal ian fears of an epidemic were partial ly born out by a numberof cases of typhoid fever which broke out among the workers in theruins, but the authorities were great ly comforted , during the height ofthis crisi s , by the opinion of one of the foremost authori ties of the world ,S urgeon G eneral VVyman, of theUnited S tates Publ ic H ealth andM arineH ospital S ervi ce.

“Judging from modern instances,i t does not seem probable that any

great epidemic wi l l fol low the earthquakes in I taly,

”he dec lared .

“O f

course,” continued the S urgeon G eneral , “if a disease i s al ready existent

ina place, a convulsion of nature, such as anearthquake, with destructionof bui ldings, the breaking of sewers , interference with pure water-supp lyand other consequent unsanitary condit ion

,would tend to cause an in

crease of cases , but there i s a popular misapprehension as to the realdangen

“I f

, for examp le, the plague existed in M essina at the time of the

earthquake, doubt less conditions would ari se that would favor i ts spread .

But plaguewas not there. T he samemight be said with regard to choleraoreven smal lpox .

“T hemere decomposition of bodies dead from accident does not of

it self give rise to disease. In 1893 a v io lent storm caused the inundationof many of the i slands contiguous to the coast of S outh Carolina andgreat apprehension was felt that on account of the largenumberof dead

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100 BUR Y IN G I T A L Y ’

S DE A D I N T R E N CH E S .

typhoid there, but the sanitary department of the I tal ian G overnmentis anexcel lent oneand entirely capableof deal ing with this condition, andwhi le there may be possibly some increase of typhoid , it i s not to beexpected that therewi l l be a great epidemic of it .

“I t wi l l be recal led that at the time of the Johnstown disaster in

1889 great apprehension was felt as to the spread of epidemic diseases,but there was no such spread . T he same was true with regard to S t.P ierre, M artinique, destroyed by the eruption of M ont Pelee. G reat apprehension was expressed and preparations made to combat epidemicdisease, but therewas no outbreak .

“T he samemay be said as to the G alveston flood in 1900 .

In S anF rancisco at the time of the earthquake in 1906 there wasno immediate outbreak of any infectious disease, although the sanitaryconditions fora whi le werebad and some typhoid developed in thecamps ,but conditions were rectified as soon as possible, and for a time thereseemed to beno epidemic results from the earthquakeandfire.

P R O P O S A L T O B O lM BA R D CI T Y .

L ater i t was found that there had been in S an F ranisco some ratsinfected with

-

p lague,and conditions favored themultiplication and spread

of p lague among them unti l finally it affected human beings . N 0 greatepidemic, however, fo l lowed, there having been only, in the course oftwo years, 160 cases , with 78 deaths , andno cases among human beingssince F ebruary

,1908

— ayear ago .

“F o l lowing these great convulsions of nature there might be, in ad

dition to increased sickness and death caused by exposure and hardships,

epidemic diseases of various sorts due to the unsanitary conditions prevai ling were i t not for the fact that invariably the first work undertakenis the disposal of the dead bodies and the rectifying of the bad sanitaryconditions and in modern times the importance of proper sanitary conditions i s so wel l understood that any civi lized community begins at onceattending to this very important matter.

“S o that , as said before, there seems to beno great ground for fearof a largeepidemic fo l lowing theearthquake at Messina .

”

A nother proposal , which yet may be carried out, was to bombard

BU R Y I N G I T A L Y ’

S DE A D I N T R E N CH E S . 101

the city by batt leships as soon as all themore readi ly recovered valuableswere gathered up and thus destroy any chance of further deaths fromfal ling masonry .

O nly one house in al l M essina is hab itable. I t was constructed bya reputed eccentri c, who for years past has been strengthening his residence with iron bars and other ingenious devices

,in order to make i t

strong enough to resist anearthquake. T he loss from a bombardment,

therefore,would be smal l indeed .

T he result of such a p lan would doubt less be to remove the citybodi ly to some more favored site, probably S yracuse, s ince Catania iseven more dangerous ly near E tna than was M essina .

A nother project was to transfer M essina provisional ly to M i lazzo,a

smal l town near the ruins of M essina on thenorth coast of the i s land .

I t i s estimated that about would suffice to rebui ldM essina for inhabi tants

,making it a commercial and maritime

centre.

I t would take about to rebui ld R eggio for 2 peop le,

I nany event many years must elapse before the thorough ly terrorizedpopulations can be induced to return to live inthe stricken territory .

S hould the I tal ianwarships engage in battering downthe wal ls st il lstanding in M essina, the project of rebuilding the commercial port atS yracuse cannot contemp late making use of the stones andmarble stilluti l izable in theruined city .

CA T A N I A I N L A V A ZO N E .

A ccording to the accounts . whi le the bui ldings crumbled under thezig—zag shaking of the earth , the stones were not fractured as at S anF rancisco . P ossibly this was due to the extraordinary bath supp l ied bythe sea

,which

,ri sing as high as the highest bui lding, submerged the

burning city in a quenching flood .

N or wi ll the new S yracuse, as the inheriter of the destroyed M es

from anaccess ion of population,as probably less than ten

the more than one hundred thousand credited to the cityE ven these have scattered northward,

fearing to remain onconvulsions . But even the Ca

102 B UR Y I N G I T A L Y ’

S DE A D I N T R E N CH E S .

tanians, long the rival s of M essina, areuncertain about remaining withinthe jaws of themonster, forE tna is very much nearer Catania than M essina. N or i s theharbor at all to be compared with S yracuse, which , without much labor

,could accommodate the navies of the world .

Catania, which is just south of where M essina stood , is a thrivingcity and continuous ly growing

,but the city has suffered quite as O ften,

though not so severely, as M essina from the outbreaks of M ount E tna .

S ome of themost start l ing scenes of earthquakeencroachment are identifiedwith Catania, whi le the series of p lateaus extending from theupperridges of E tna, almost to the outskirts of Catania, are a dismal reminderof the irresistible might of the crater when it once begins to spi l l destruction from its insatiate brim .

T he channels from the crater toward Catania mark very distinctlythe different outflows of mountain, for each sideof the lava streams aresometimes a mi le wide; the dank green of the vegetation brings intomore deso lating rel ief the furious wrath of the molten stream whichburns everything that it encounters . A t one point a few mi les fromCatania, as i f by mirac le, the stream was stopped at i ts last eruption, leaving a wal l l ike a batt lement . T he pasantry formi les about attribute thesudden stoppage at this point to the interposition of the patron S aintA gatha, a rel i c of whom is reverent ly preserved in the Catauian Ca

thedral.

U S E L E S S A H U N DR E D YE A R S .

A s it requires about a hundred years to transform the lava into fertiliz ing soi l , the vast sweeps of brownish terraces make a landscape alternating in parasiac verdure and desolating emptiness . T he very loveliness of the country intensifies the abomination of the lava desolation

,for

exotic plants as sensuously gorgeous as are to be seen in the N i le landsare commonculture al l over the southern segment of the S icil ian I sland .

Innatural scenery the picture far surpasses anything to be seen inthe wonderland of I taly itself

, yet beyond the industrious students ofpeople and p laces , S icily i s inexplicably unknown to the tourist world ,

always alert for “ sensation.

”

A company of capital i sts who have returned from N ew York to thei r

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104 B U R Y I N G I T A L Y ’

S DE A D IN T R E N CH E S .

D isentangl ing the various rel ics of changing creeds wi ll furnish thestudious tourist with enlivening occupation, for the Christian edificewas transformed into a M os lem mosque, then into a G reek church , andto-day a R oman temp leof worship .

T hough remodeled by Chri stian and pagan, the same co lumns andmaterial compose theedifice, so that with history in hand the vi s itor maysee in his mind ‘ s eye the process ion of diverse worshippers that celebrateddevotions to theunknown god . T here A rchimedes , in the intervals of h is scientific inventions , repaired to consult the oracles ; thereM arcel lus, the R oman conqueror, forbade his so ldiers to enter, but hecouldn’ t stop the vandal pro-consul , V erres , from looting the temp le ofi ts incomparable statuary which heemp loyed the legions in carting awayby night .

T o the art fo lk the most interesting rel ic of the past is a more thanl ifes ize statue of V enus A nadyomene, discovered in 1804 by theM arquisL andolina in his gardens . Connossieurs hold this ample figure in finerwork of art than the V enus de M i lo in the L ouvre

,or the V enus de

M edici in theP i tt i Palace. T his V enus L andolinais said by the learned tobe a elebrated work model led in A thens for the unspeakable R omantravesty of an E mperor, H el iogabalus , who in a moment of generositypresented it to the city of S yracuse. T hough the head and right armare lacking ,

the figure is held by art fo lk to far transcend in benignantgraceany other V enus in existence.

R E M I N I S CE N T O F P L U T A R CH .

S hould S yracuse inheri t M essina’s fortunes , the readers of Plutarchwi l l beapt to revive their interest in oneof h is heroes at least . T imolean,

who among al l its vi cissitudes,the city commemorated as its “grand o ld

man. T imo leon, according to the devout bel ief of hi s contemporaries ,“was favored by the gods wherever he went .

”

I t was T imoleon (another Cincinnatus in conduct)who quit sequestrationto rescue h is compatriots from a swarm of tyrants and ended byrouting the theretofore invincible legions of Carthage.

E ven walking through the streets of thecity,the tour ist would feel

BUR Y I N G I T A L Y ’

S DE A D I N TR E N CH E S . 105

as if he were a contemporary with the worthies pictured in P lutarch ’ spages or in the stunning warand seapictures of T hucydides .

A narrow and winding way named in honor of themother of V enus,V ia D ione. A nother the street of the Duomo leads into the

“P iazza

A rchimedes . L aV iaM aniace recalls the great captain who routed theCarthaginian armies . T he

“Passage A retusa" shows that the city coun

ci ls had sentiment in their poli tical ministry of the people’

s affairs . Justoutside the remote wal ls are the remains of two D oric columns whichin S yracuse’ s great day marked the city ’

s veneration forT imoleon’

s A rchimedes .

T he bones of the worthies are not identified with the co lumns indeed , even inCi cero ’ s time therewas dub iety as to the exact whereaboutsof the tombs of T imo leon and A rchimedes , though their names werealways outhe tongue of the public orators .

S A R A CE N S CA P T U R E D CI T Y.

Ci cero wri tes that he found the monument of the i l lustrious mencovered with brushwood and bramble” so that the monument was unknown to the S yracusans who even denied its existence.

T he wretched S yracusans, however, may be excused for not knowing exact ly where their great dead were buried , since when the S aracens captured the city in the year 878 before Christ , i t was devastatedabout as thoroughly as M ount E tna did its work on Messina the otherday .

M iles of mounds , broken columns and mouldering fragments of whatwere once colossal edifices, stillmake clear that in even those early daysenterpri s ing citizens had the modern fever of “greater

W hen O rtyg ia, the peninsula, became crowded , the city extendedacross the narrow channel and took in finally A cradina, T yche, N eapol i sand E pipolae. O rtyg iawas known as the inner city, the other four asthe outer .

T hesewereenclosed by a wall onehundredand eighty stadia. or about

106 BU R Y I N G I T A L Y ’

S DE A D I N T R E N CH E S .

be borne in mind that private dwel l ings took up no such space in the

early days of theworld as they do to-day .

E ven thewal ls strong enough to resist theenergy of themost val iantwarriors of the world , have crumbled away .

W hen the greater S yracusewas in its prime, the harbor was wal ledby the city, fornearly four mi les, and in that sheet of water some of themost terrific sea fights of antiquity were witnessed by the mi l l ions ofs itizenry ,

for in those days therewas no danger of flying missi les to forcethe spectators to remain at a safe distance.

S cores of mi litary students during the last hundred years have reto ldthe incidents of the fight at A ctium , one, aF rench admiral , actual ly naming many of the triremes

, yet the combat between the forces of united ,

or half united G reece,and S yracuse was , according to the minute ac

count O f T hucydides , a farmore determined struggle thanA ntony putupin defence of his adored Cleopatra.

A s in most of the decisive victor ies recorded by P lutarch,and the

G reek writers , there was treachery among the vanquished , which stripsthe victors of the glory their valor excited from end to endof the thenknown world .

But batt ling on vessel s moved by three banks of oars,the fighting

was farmore desperate and even deadly than with powder and bal l,for

the fighting menhad to come hand-tov handand sett le the matter by individual constancy .

In this fight , fifty thousand of the A thenian G reeks were countedgladiators and when they struck out against the S yracusans

,i t was like

the meet ing of so many S ul l ivans seeking the “solar plexus . ”

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108 W O R L D R U S H E S R E L I E F T O S U R V I V O R S .

wants of civi l ized communities is paralyzed, and an exceptional emer~geney exists which demands that the obligations of humanity shal l regardno l imit of nationa l l ines .

“T he immense debt of civi l ization to I taly , the warm and steadfast

friendship between that country and our own, the affection for their native land felt by great numbers of good A merican citizens who are immigrants from I taly

,the abundance with which G od has blessed us in our

safety— al l these should prompt us to immediate and effective rel ief .P rivate generosity is responding nobly to the demand by contribu

tions through the safe and efficient channel of the A meri can R edCrossS ociety .

“Confident of your approval

,I have ordered the G overnment supp ly

ships Celtic and Culgoa to the scene of diseaster, where, upon receiv ingthe authori ty which I now ask of you, they wi l l be able to dispense food ,c lothing and other supp l ies with which they are laden to the value ofabout T he Celti c has al ready sai led andthe Culgoa is at P ortS aid

E ight vessels of the returning batt leship fleet are al ready underorders for I talian waters . and that G overnment has been asked if theirservices can bemadeuseful .

B A I L E Y ’

S N O S U R P R I S E S .

I recommend that the Congress approve the app l ication of suppliesabove indicated and further appropriate the sum of to be appl ied to thework of relief at the discretion of the E xecutive and with theconsent of the I tal ian G overnment .

“I suggest that the law fol low the form of that passed after the

M ont Pelee di saster inI mmediately S enator H ale asked that the matter be referred to the

Committee on A ppropriations . T he committee m et and within half anhour reported a resolution for in money and authorizing the

P resident to di spatch worth of provi s ions on the navy supplyships Celtic and Culgoa.

W O R L D R U S H E S R E L I E F T O S U R V I V O R S 109

broke the stillness of the chamber. Mr. H a le quick ly had precedentsfor the action incorporated in the record .

I am oneof those S enators, said M r. Bailey, who do not bel ievethat the F ederal G overnment has power to spend the people’

s money inthis way . I f i t could be shown by authority that it has the power, Ishould be among the first to advocate it . I t i s evident the S enator fromM aine wishes to justify the action taken to-day by inserting in the R ecord thematter to which he referred , but I bel ieve there i s no argumentso fallacious as the one from precedent when that argument is advancedunder the stress of a terrible calamity such as this .”

M eantime the H ouse had passed a resolution appropriating $800,

000, but saying nothing about the use of the Culgoa and Celtic . A s

soon as i t was read S enator H aleobjected to it as not specific .

S enator L odge suggested a conference with the H ouse, but theH ouse had adj ourned .

“W el l,

” said H ale, there i s nothing forus to do but accept the sub

stitute.

”

And i t was passed .

P resident Pall ieres , of F rance, sent a telegram of condo lence on thecatastrophe to K ing V ictor E mmanuel. Premier Clemenceau sent asimi lar message to the I tal ian Premier, whi leM . P i chon, the F rench F oreignM inister, communicated his sympathy to the I tal ian M inister ofF oreign A ffairs , S ignor T ittoni .

U . S . S U P P L Y S H I P S A I L S .

T he U nited S tates supp ly ship Celtic, which was to have m et thereturning batt leship fleet with ho l iday cheer , sai led out of N ew York H arbor a few days later on an entirely different mission, but without changing a single item of her cargo . S he sai led direct to M essina, to give ami l l ion and a half of navy rations to the earthquake sufferers .

T he idea of changing the Celtic into a rel ief ship came to her commander, H arry M cL . P . H ust . I t met with the immediate approval of

municatedwith thedepartmentat. Wash m

110 W O R L D R U S H E S R E L I E F T O S UR V IV O R S .

R ed tape was cut out in a j iffy on the groundof humanity, necessary p reparations were hurried at the yard, and the Celtic, with Christmas trees sti l l lashed to the mast-heads— it had been des igned to makethe Celtic the Christmas S hip for the fleet— sai led H er supp l ies werenot eaten by A merican sai lors, but by suffering survivors of the Calabrian and S ici lian disaster.

Inthe face O f the overwhelming need of the I tal ians, the departmentconsidered its own men second .

Just as our S hips were the first to reach K ingston after the W estI ndian earthquake disaster , so the A merican naval flag on the Celtic wasthe first to bring actual food supp l ies to M essina from any country, eventhough wewere miles away .

L O A D E D W I T H P R O V I S I O N S .

S tored in the vast ho lds of the Celtic when she steamed out was thefol lowing

F resh beef,

pounds ; mutton, pounds ; pork,pounds ; veal, pounds ; sausage, fresh , pounds ; pork sau

sage, pounds ; bologna sausage, pounds ; turkey,pounds ; lunch meat , pounds ; chipped beef, pounds ; fresheggs

,dozens

,an equivalent of dozen more dehydrated ;

pounds fresh potatoes,an equivalent of pounds of dehy

drated potatoes ; fresh onions , pounds ; app les, pounds ;corned beef, tinned , pounds ; bacon , t inned , pounds ;smoked hams

,pounds ; tinned ham ,

pounds ; lard ,pounds ; salt pork, pounds ; salmon, tinned , 2 pounds ; barley .

pounds ; beans (pea), gallons ; beans ( l ima), gallons ;cornmeal , pounds ; corn starch

,pounds ; flour,

pounds ; hominy, pounds ; oatmeal , pounds ; rol led oats ,pounds ; rice, pounds ; tapioca , pounds ; tinned peas,pounds ; tinned beans, pounds ; tinned l ima beans, pounds ;tinned corn, 2 pounds ; tomatoes , pounds ; dried apples,pounds ; dried peaches, pounds ; prunes , pounds ; rai sins,pounds ; nuts , pounds ; apricots, tinned ,

pounds ; peaches ,tinned , pounds ; pears , tinned , pounds ; butter,

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112 W O R L D R U S H E S R E L I E F T O S U R V IVO R S .

sulate. T hewoman’ s body could not be identified , but undoubted ly wasone of severa l female servants sleeping on the same floor.

S ome c lothing, a hat and a coat identified as belonging to Mrs .

Cheney were found in the ruins early in the search , but the bodies of theConsul and his wife were not discovered ti l l long afterward . T he ruinsof the Consulate were pi led high , and it proved most dif ficult work digging into themass of stoneand beams .

Invarious parts of the ci ty a few bodies were removed from near thesurfaceof the ruins by the A merican sailors , but there was no system of

identification or enumeration . N umerous instances of extraordinary vitality are related among the v ictims who , even two weeks after thedisaster weredug out of ruins alive. T hreewomen andone man were takenout very much emaciated and suffering many bruises, yetaliveafter having been buried for twelve days.

A nother extraordinary case was that of a woman and her two infants rescued . T hey had been buried under a col lapsed house, but prototed from being crushed to death by the shelter of some protectingbeams . T hewoman had kept the children alive foreleven days by nursing them , but oneof the infants died as soon as taken out .

T hosesurviving under ruins but pinned down into almost immovablepositions by huge beams and boulders, often showed amazing vi tality .

O neman dug out after long impri sonment without food or drink,under

piles of debris, was put on a stretcher and carried to an A merican ship .

W hen the bearers reached the dock theman rose from the stretcher andwalked to a cabin onboard thevessel .

DE A T H S T I L L H A R V E S T I N G .

T hese were tl~e exceptional cases , forthe death rate among the ih ~

jured was terribly high . M any died daily on the ships andin theambulance trains . T heauthorities moved the injured to N aples , Palermo anseven G enoa, where rest camps were established .

W ooden shacks were erected in the parks andpiazas to accommo~

date homeless Messinians andto shelter the soldiers on duty . T he

north endof townwas not damagedsomuch as othersections, andmanyof the low buildings thereare intact.

W O R L D R U S H E S R E L I E F T O S U R V I V O R S . 118

T he electric l ight p lant was patchedup and was put in operationabout tendays after the first earthquake, affording faci l ities for continuing work on the ruins without interruption. But the authorities wereall at sea, without system or efficient direction. T housands of soldierswere engaged only in patro l l ing dangerous streets and guarding property instead of helping in thework of rescue.

S U R V I V O R S D I S T R A CT E D .

H undreds of donkey carts were emp loyed in removing merchandisefrom half-ruined stores and warehouses in theV iaG aribaldi M arina. Sur

vivors owning property or awaiting the removal of bodies of relativesfrom ruins refused to leave M essina, but hung around helpless and distracted from day to day . S o ldiers guarded streets where there i s dangerfrom falling wal ls, and at each end could be seen groups of men andwomen si lently gazing past the mil i tary cordon at the ruins of what wasonce their homes .

T he scenes in the desolated cities during those terrible days that followed the catastrophe are vividly pictured by one of the officers of theAmerican cruiser Y ankton. H e says

“W hen we had passed S cylla and rounded Capo del F aro there

O pened upon us thepanorama of destruction. F aro, Paradiso, andall thevillages along the coast were in ruins . T hen M essina came into s ight .T he sunwas sett ing, and a lovely frameof violet hills, a tranquil dark sea,and asky of emerald and gold surrounded the sceneof the world ’

s greatest tragedy.

“A t first the extent oi the disaster was not apparent , for some still

standing white walls showed prettily against the dark background , andit was hard to believethat the city was destroyed . But soon we saw thatnothing remained but tottering shells . A llalong themagnificent , curvedseafront was ruin. N othing broke the desolate line. N othing had beenspared .

“Andthen weentered the harbor and themost dreadful things of all

becameapparent to us . M essina was dead . T hroughout the length ofthe Corso V i tto'rio E manuele, which afew days ago hadbeen anespla

114 W O R L D R U S H E S R E L I E F T O S U R V I V O R S .

of the grave. S ometimes a few so ldiers passed, and at one point therewas a sma l l crowd waiting for the distribution of food . T he rest wasdeath T hat was the first impression.

N ight fel l, and the only i l lumination was from lamps and the searchl ights of many ships in theharbor . I was rowed ashore. T he searchl ightof an I tal ian warship p layed on a single spot, and to it the boatmen tookme. I t was where the troops had organized some sort of headquarters ,and a litt le band of so ldiers was sitting around a camp fire.

T hey talked soft ly, as mendo in the presence of death, and, in thebri l l iant light from the ship, i t seemed that this was the only p lace al ivein what had been a town of inhab itants . T his was my second impression.

“I walked the length of theCorso , and then I real ized the ful l horror

of what had befal len M essina . T he largest city in S ici ly had beensmashed as a glass dish would be smashed if i t were thrown upon a stonefloor. T hat any of the inhab itants survived Seems a miracle. T hat themost appal l ing estimates of the loss of l ife have not been exaggerationsappears evident . T o go into detai ls i s useless . I t i s ruin everywhere.

T he only thing I found intact was M ontorsolis’

s beautiful fountain of

N eptune.

M O T H E R A L I V E ; B A BY DE A D .

N o real comparison between M ess ina and S an F rancisco i s possible,” adds theoffi cer .

“I was in S anF rancisco fivedays after theearth

quake, and al ready wooden structures were being put up , work had begun on the tramway l ines , and themain streets were crowded with cheerful

, hopeful peop le. T he residentia l portion of the city had been spared ,

and just across the bay was O akland,to serve as a temporary place of

business . T he case of M essina was altogether different . S oon therewi l lbe nobody left but troops . A smal l sett lement may be establ i shed , butM essina has disappeared .

“A woman was rescued at R eggio , nearly two weeks after the first

great disaster. Beside herwas the corpseof a child fivemonths old . S he

had tried to protect the infant with herbody,but thebaby had been dead

seven days , during al l of which the mother lay unable to move beneath

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116 W O R L D R U S H E S R E L I E F T O S Ue voas .

I went up anumber of al leys , streets , and arcades where the waywas passable. O thers were blocked up s tories high with debris al laround

. T he arcades , from the Conservatorio E mmanuele to the V ia

G aribaldi , were bare and black with smoke. T he municipal palace wassti l l burning furiously inside. T he B rit i sh Consulatewas outwardly litt ledamaged , but inside comp letely wrecked . O ver i t flew the flag nutouched .

M any arches were sti l l intact, but the shops were a mass of wreckage

— jewelers ’ shops, art studios , banks and mi lliners ’ shops were full ofrubbi sh . N ear by the T rinacria H otel was razed with E ngl i sh and G er~

manvi sitors stil l beneath the ruins .“T he large V ia S an Martino was a desert . T he frontage of the

houses was l itt le damaged ; insidenothing but a mass of rubbish . A crossthe road a row of dozen corpses , and c lose by surv ivors and trooperscamped around great wood fires .

A L L AL I K E ; P O O R N O W .

A t the other endof the town were larger camps . T he P iazza del laPorta-Bassa was crowded with tents . M others nursed their babes bygypsy fires on which rations cooked whi le the chi ldren p layed about nuheeding, al l clad in strange and many—colored odd garments . R ich andpoor mingled and one could not tel l who in the crowd was a r ich S ici l iannobleand who a beggar . A llare al ike poor now . Y et there were manyof them who were extraordinari ly uncomp laining . T hey seem resigned .

T hey may be stricken dumb and dazed .

A cross the Corso by the seaboard the colony under the tents wasmore loud ly tragic . A n old woman wounded lay shrieking incessantly .

I passed her tent six times and she was sti l l shrieking,with her husband

prostrate by her side. A long the road wooden huts harbored famil iesin extraordinary rags— some bril l iant , some fi lthy . In a rai led-off parkbread was being given out as quick ly as possibleby troopers

, anda heartrending, hungry mob crushed against the bars shouting ,

whining, and

moaning forbread l ikewi ld animals at feeding time.

”

O ne of the saddest scenes A merica saw in connecti on with thedisaster was wi tnessed ih N ew York when four hundred S icilian steerage

W O R L D R U S H E S R E L I E F T O S UR V I V O R S . 117

passengers on the steamship G ermania, which arrived a week later fromN aples, were stri cken with grief when they learned for the first time ofthe disaster which had befallen their relatives and friends inM essina .

N ot a word of the earthquake had reached them unti l the steamshipreached her dock , when a reporter boarded the vessel and through aninterpreter broke the news to th em . A t first they were incl ined to beincredulous and seemed not to real ize that any O f them were concernedunti l one of the passengers from M essina asked whether the earthquakehaddamaged that city.

“M essina is W iped out , rep l ied the interpreter .

M y who le fami ly is there,” shrieked the passenger . M y poor wi fe

and chi ldren ; they are al l dead .

T he heart-broken S ici l ian threw himself on the deck , and thoughhis fel low passengers crowded around and endeavored to comfort himhe cont inued to bewai l his fate.

O thers thronged about the interpreter and questioned him frantical ly about the disaster , and as each new detai l showing the great loss ofl ifewas related those coming from theearthquake region wept and wrungtheir hands or ran shr ieking about the deck .

S o distressing did the scene become that the captain ordered the

interpreter to discontinue his taleunti l the S ici l ians had left the ship .

M any of the passengers declared that they would return to S ici ly atonce, but were dissuaded when they were informed that the dead wouldhave been buried long before they could reach their homes .

CH A PT E R X I .

T H E S T R I CK E N R E G I O N — T H E P A T H O F T H E R U I N .— S H A K E N A G A I N

A N D A G A I N .

-P R I ZE T O O O F T E N D E A T H .—M A G N I T U D E O F D I S A S

T E R .

-QU A K E S P E R I O D I CA L L Y I N S I CI L Y A N D CA L A B R I A .

H E s tri cken region i s something the shape of N ew Jersey,but it

is larger ; i t was more populous. W e may figure M ess ina asPaterson, a town about its size; every bui lding is a ruin, every street ap lague spot, the army in control, the refugees being removed to P ittsburg . Jersey City is scarcely larger than Catania, where the tidal wavesmashed every sma l l boat and half ruined all the town below the heights .Caltanisetta, the sulphur capital , i s as large as E lmira ; and a thousanddead lie there. Inthe seventy-mi le circuit about E dna lie G iarre, A cireale, Paterno, B ronte, the town of L ord N elson’

s tit le; A derno andBelpasso, with peop le. A population l ike that of N ewark andthe O ranges l ies here in the perpetual power of E tna ; we do not yetknow how they have fared .

Inthe north it is the soil that yields harvests ; in the south , the sun .

W e can form no concept O f the extent of the terror without remembering the exceeding density of population wherever the cultivable shoresinvite industry. T he rai lroad running from M essina to Catania is l ikethat from N ew York to N ew H aven in thenumber and sizeofthe townsand vi llages .

I magine along al l that distancea tidal waveof more than thirty feet ,pi led higher by resi sting obstac les , and following an earthquake l ike S anF rancisco ’

T he colder Calabrian coast facing thenorthwest i s not quiteso populous, but even there theearthquake found no lack of vi ctims .

Ina litt le timetheworld outsidewill turn to other topics morenear ,to it morepress ing . W ewonder at nothing long . But S ine steam and

the cable knit all nations closer together the brotherhood of man is better understood. I t is only known that the earthquake is the greatestdisaster of historic time; it i s certain that no other has ever so appealedto the sympathy and the generosi ty of thewhole world .

118

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120 T H E S T R I CK E N R E G I O N .

deed, that the vo lcano casts forth that are the irresistible temptation forthe I talian agriculturist . T hey are the finest and cheapest ferti l izerknown.

T his i s a temptation indeed, but at best i ts prize i s a bare existence,whi le the penalty is, al l too frequent ly , death .

W hen M ount E tna scatters them far and wide farmers rej oice, forthat means that the crops wi l l be abundant . Inno p lace do the grovesof oranges and lemons and o lives flouri sh as they do under the volcano ’ sshadow, and nowhere else i s their chanceof life so smal l .

T he finest oranges in theworld come from the groves on the shoulders of E tna . S omeof these lands, continual ly menaced by earthquakeand flame have escaped destruction from the floods of mo lten lava andhave been cultivated for centuries without other ferti l ization than hascome from theashes blown down from the crater farabove, and they areas productiveas they were years ago .

But all this region of ferti l ity and plenty in S icily and Calabria is adeserted waste now along the broad path which the earthquakes havescarred time and again through the centuries . O f the nearly two mi llion people who l ived ih the whole region a tenth , perhaps more, perished.

Detai l slowly added to detai l , horror upon horror’ s head, no longerpermit doubt that the earthquake was the most appalling disaster of

modern times . T he estimates of loss vary up to whom Prof.R ioco

,director of the E tna O bservatory, bel ieves to have perished .

T he number wi ll never be positively known. Perhaps the larger estimates are themore accurate.

M A G N I T U DE O F D I S A S T E R .

A t San F rancisco fewer than a thousand dead ; in the poundingmaelstrom of the Johnstown flood less than three thousand . T hese disasters shook the nation from end to end; conceivewhat must have beenthe feeling in I taly, especial ly in S outhern I taly, fami l iar now with thesig ht of refugees , famished , wounded and bereaved !

M essina los t from plague in 1740, from cholera so

T H E S T R I CK E N R E G I O N . 133.

that town alone. M ore than once in modern times famine has destroyedits mi llion peop le in I ndia, but their pitifully dragging deaths lack the

dramatic shock of earthquake. A nd then— they were so far away, so

l itt le bound to us by ties of blood,so apatheti c even to each other ’ s suf~

fering s !

M ont Pelee did its work six y ears earl ier with awful thoroughness,

but within a l ittle space comparatively . T hewreck of H erculaneum andP ompei i was not in loss of l ifea great calamity T heearthquake that engulfed L i sbon was far less destructive, and for a horror to cap that wemust go back more than two hundred years .

T he great Calabrian earthquake of 1783, which stands out in the

history of that oft-stri cken country with horrid distinctness because ofthe completeness and accuracy of the reports which have been handeddown, i s credited with having ki l led

Q U A K E S P E R I O D I CA L I N R E G I O N .

E arthquake and disaster have been periodical in Calabria and S ici lyso long as thememory of man runs , and whi letheearly traditional state !

ments of the loss of life and property were doubt less exaggerated , theascertained facts of history are sombre enough .

L ess than half a century ago a careful observermade the estimatethat in the K ingdom of N ap les alone in the three-quarters of a centuryprevious the annual toll taken by earthquakes was 1500 lives , and in theperiod since that date the disasters have been repeated and severe.

W ho lesale emigration has not helped the s ituation, and the constantly recurring famine and pesti lence in the train of the earthquakeshave helped to make these provinces themost beautiful in I taly, and ful lof priceles s histori c association, the most backward in the kingdom .

W hat wi l l be it s future? W ho shal l say ?I have seen the peasants on the s lopes of Vesuvius, laying the foun~

dations of houses to replace their overwhelmed homes while the lavabeneath their feet was sti ll too hot to be touched with thenaked hand .

Dig a foot down andi t i s a molten mass, redwith the heat of nature’sfurnaces . Y et with desolation and destruction all around him , the peas

122 T H E S T R I CK E N R E G I O N .

I t i s fate, hemutters . I f G od is to strike, he can str ikeelsewhere

as wel l as here.

T hat i s his phi losophy . T hat is his impulse to-davfounded on the

history of the past .M essina may never rise from its ruins . R eggio

’

s bones may bleachto the sun of the centuries . W ho can say ?

T he money or material loss in the earthquake district was calculated in terms of hundreds of mi l l ions of do l lars . W hen it is consideredthat this blow fel l upon a very smal l area and a relatively few peop le, theutter devastation fo l lowing in the wake of the disaster appal ls the imag ination.

A destructive earthquake such as this , accompanied by a tidal wave,appears to remove the very foundation of the people’ s property andsustenance.

InS anF rancisco fires and W est I ndian hurricanes something is leftto the survivors . H ouses are torn to pieces , many peop le are woundedand ki l led , the property damage i s great , but the sun shines for the survivors, food is within reach , hope i s left .

CA N R E CO N S T R U CT I O N CO M E ?

Inthe wake of the I talian earthquake the means of l ife were swal

lowed up at one stroke, and there remained only desolation completeand staggering.

O ne of the brightest aspects of this terrible calamity was the ex

h ibitionof the spiri t of pity,mercy andhelpfulness which animated the

world Inthis sp lendid rival ry theU nited S tates was in the forefront,and

onenation spoke to another .A century and a quarter ago al l Calabria trembled for one awful

moment . W hen the earth grew sti l l again lay dead . F ifty-twoyears later occurred a comparat ively minor disaster, and but a thousandwere ki lled . In 1857 Calabria lost inhab itants by another earthquake.

In S ici ly, in 1783, the same tremor that shook Calabria nearly destroyed M essina and ki l led of its inhabitants

,besides causing great

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124 T H E S T R I CK E N R E G I O N .

height and sending their pieces flying in every direction cause many toperish .

In Japan, which is a more high ly seismic country than I taly andwhose cl imate i s much the same as that part of the latter country that issubject to earthquakes , thehouses aremost ly of bamboo, and of the l ightest description.

W hen the earth rocks there, even if the bamboo dwel l ings do fal l ,the inhabi tants craw l out of them quite unhurt , and the loss of l ife andproperty i s smal l . I t i s rare to hear of many peri shing from an earthquake in Japan,

unless i t be accompanied by a tidal wave.

JA P A N ’

S G R E A T E S T A DV A N T A G E .

But whi le bamboo is cheap and avai lable in Japan, neither that norwood of any descript ion exists in abundance in I taly. I t is a countrycomparatively denuded of its forests .

T hose that are preserved are jealous ly guarded , and wood is cost ly.

E ven the“box sh ooks” — as the thin strips of lumber from which the

boxes in which lemons are shipped are cal led— are sent from this country .

S tone, on the other hand , i s p lentifu l and cheap . T herefore, everybui lding is of stone, some a l itt lemoremassive than others , according tothe wealth of the owner.

But even the structurewi th the thickest wal ls wi l l fall apart whenthe earth ri ses and fal ls l ike the sea.

T he cities of Central and S outh A merica, where violent shocks arefelt occasional ly

, are bui lt almost entirely from concrete, which makesanentire edifice one homogeneous mass

,just as if i t were carved from

one sol id block of stone. T hesewithstand the impact of the j o lting earthfar better than structures where stones are pi led one above the other .

Y et, strangely enough , in southern I taly, in the very country wherecement was invented by the R omans, but few of these concrete bui ldingsare to be found to-day.

M ost of the examples of concrete construction are br idges andarches bui lt by theR omans themselves from ten to twenty centuries ago .

T hese, despite a litt le outward crumbling at the corners and surfacecracks, areas strong as if they were put up within the last decade.

TH E S T R I CKE N R E G I O N . 135

T he long procession of earthquakes seems to have passed them bywithout touching them with a destroying hand .

Inother ways, too, progress has stood sti l l in thi s earthquake land .

E ven the largest cit ies that have sewerage systems at al l possess thosethat are far behind the standard set by the sanitary engineers O f otherplaces of s imilar size.

Inthe larger towns the ancient system of cesspoo ls is in commonuse, and in the smaller the centuries-o ld custom of letting the sewageflow into a gutter in the centreof the street and thence to some spot ona lower level where it may enrich the ground is in use.

R E BU I L D I N G U N L I K E L Y .

Many of theruined cities neverwi llbe rebuilt , in all probab i l ity .

R eggio, forexamp le, a town of inhabi tants, of whom but fewescaped al ive

,doubtless wi l l disappear from the map .

M essina , a town O f inthe storm centre of the earthquake,though it has lasted for years , may never recover ful ly from the

present disaster.

A n important factor in reconstruction is l ikely to be lacking whenthe country tries to adjust itself from this terrible shock .

A large part of the population wi l l emigrateas quick ly as possible toA merica, leaving but few to carry on the work of rebui lding the shatteredcities and reclaiming thedevastated fields andv ineyards and groves .

T hat wi l l mean that during the few years hundreds of thousands ofthe peasants from the Calabrian mountains , S ici l ians from the s lopes ofE tna— m enof all occupations in life— wi l l set sai l for N orth and S outhAmerica .

T his country is sure to get the full of the emigration— infact, N ewYork wi l l get such an influx of I tal ians as it never hadbefore.

I t i s possible,in addition to the sum given to the earthquake vic~

time, that another vast fund will be rai sed in this country forthe bringinghither.of this fund never will be known, for it will flow

from themillions of I talians herewho have

126 T H E S T R I CK E N R E G I O N .

T he scientists are beginning already to disagree about thecauses ofthis great earthquake.

O negroup of sei smologists contends that it was caused by a leakageof water through thebedof the ocean, through the earth ’

s crust, in fact,unti l i t reached the subterranean fires that feed the vo lcanoes .

E ven when it i s considered that the thickness of the earth ’

s crustis fifteen or twenty mi les , scientists of this schoo l claim that this theoryis entirely reasonable, and point out the length of time during which thewater sweeps through the rocks and stores i tself in some vast chamber intheearth , final ly to be turned to steam by theunquenchablefires beneath .

T hen the terrific force of the impri soned vapor final ly reaches thepoint where i t has to burst forth and it shakes the earth .

A nother group , equal ly eminent , i s quite as posit ive that the slidingand shifting of the earth ’ s crust bring about the di sturbance. But whi lethere i s much speculation about the cause of earthquakes, no man hasbeen bo ld enough yet to advance any theory as to how they may be prevented .

W hatever the cause, the result in this recent disaster has been tomaterial ly change the geographical features of southern I taly and of

S ici ly.

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1“ S CI E N T I S T ! DI S CU S S D I S A S T E R .

ing point in the Philippines, you will see exact ly where the earthquakebelt l ies .

T here are other minor belts , one of which passes southward alongthe coast of California and M exico and thewes t coast of S outh A mer ica .

T hereareevidences observable to-day in practical ly all parts of theworldO f other earthquake belt s in which tremendous geo logi cal changes andupheavals werewrought in prehistoric times .

E ven N ew York Ci ty is in an earthquake belt . A t some time, probably thousands and thousands of years ago , a might earthquake sp l i tasunder the rock that united what is now the i sland of M anhattan to thePal isades of theN ew Jersey coast . T hat earthquake formed the H udsonR iver.

E arthquake belts are admittedly weak spots in the outer crust ofthe earth— the high pressure boi ler on which we l ive— and there is noevidence that any of them were ever permanent ly repaired .

S A F E F O R A T I M E, A N YH O W .

P rofessor E dward S euss,the eminent V ienna geo logi st , predicted a

few days ago that eruptions would follow earthquake and tidal wave inS outhern I taly H eattributes theearthquake to the sinking of theearth ’scrust, otherwi se a buck l ing of the boi ler p lates , in the zone of which theL ipari I s lands are the centre H e dec lared that as the process of sinkingwent on theCalabrian andS ici l ian high lands on ei ther side of the S traitsof M essina would be submerged , only the highest peaks remaining abovethe sea. T he strait , he said , would thereby be great ly widened .

P rofessor S uess i s of the opinion that the earth ’s crust i s gradual lyshrinking everywhere. T here i s consolation to be found

,however, inhis

further remark that the l ife of the human species wi l l be too short tomake this phenomenon important to mankind .

T he average thickness of theearth ’s crust, the boi ler plates, is gene

ral ly assumed to be fifty mi les and its average density to be about fivetimes that of water . S cientists have estimated that the downward pressure at adepth of fifty mi les below the surface of the earth is somewhatin excess of half a mi ll ion pounds to the square inch I t is a safe conclusion that within a large portion of the earth ’

s crust there exist pent-up

S CI E N T I S T S DI S CU S S D I S A S T E R . 129

gases, particularly steam under a pressure equal to that exerted by themost powerful high exp losives H igh

‘

explosives probably exert pressures ranging from to pounds to the square inch .

W hen a high exp losive is detonated theamount of pressure dependsupon the volume of gases l iberated and the temperature of the gases.

N i troglycerine, exp loded in a space where i t could not expand, wouldexert a pressure of probably from to pounds to the

square inch . T he pressure would certainly be less than half a mi l l ionpounds to the square inch , a lthough the temperatureof the gases wouldequa l the boi ling point of steel. Consequent ly

,with a pound

forceho lding in check a 3 pound forcewhich is continuous ly exerting itself in an effort to burst the earth ’

s crust asundecr, i t i s reasonablysafe to assume that the stronger force wi l l continue to prevai l

,for some

t ime to come at least , and that there i s not the sl ightest danger of theearth blowing to pieces.

W E A K S P O T S I N E A R T H’

S CR U S T

U nfortunately, as the appall ing record of earthquakes shows, thereare many very weak spots in the earth ’ s crust . Deep down under thecrust

,where water has entered through faults

,to be entrapped and

high ly heated , with no room for expansion, i t dissolves the rock , and asunder the enormous pressures i t forces its way through narrow crevicesto new positions it cuts new channel s in the granite floors , just as inglacial time subglacial streams cut passages through the ice.

Consequent ly,when the eruption of a vo lcano takes place, rel ieving

the pressures in the deep passages under i t , there i s a ' rush toward theout let of streams of superheated watermade syrupy with stone in so lution . A s these streams of si l i ca-charged water find vent at the vo lcanothe expansion of the pent-up stream takes p lacewith exp losive violence,forming vo lcanic dust and pumice stone, which are belched forth in stu

pendous quantities . T hen portions of the earth ’

s crust , which have beenresting upon a support of steamunder dynamite pressures, naturally sag

and shift when those pressures are removed or materially lessened .

T he vastamount of so l id matter ejected at times from volcanoes isdifficult of comprehensi on. T he great volcano K rakatoa had beenex

180 S CI E N T I S T S D I S CU S S D I S A S T E R .

tinct forages when, in 1883, its top blew off with a shock felt clearthrough the earth, and with a blast that sent a wave of air around theearth three times , whi le the fine vo lcanic dust did not entirely sett le outof theatmosphere formore than two years , as was indicated by thenuusual ly bri l liant disp lay of red sunsets . I t is estimated that more mudwas ejected from the mountain on that occasion than the M iss is sippiR iver discharges in two hundred and fifty years . T his was the greatestvolcanic eruption in historic times . T he distance i s not too great northe time too remote for the eruption of M ont Pelee to have caused theearthquakes of San F rancisco , V alparai so and K ingston, while poss iblyV esuvius may have p layed a material part .

E A R T H Q U A K E S To CO N T I N U E .

Inthe opinion of theastronomical editor of theA lmanach H achette,

earthquakes wi l l never cease unti l the shel l, or crust , of the earth restsupon a completely so l idified block T he earth wi ll then be in a formwhich only exterior forces can modify But at thi s distant and fantasticepoch the sun wi l l no longer send us heat , and the earth , like the moon,

wi l l have become a wandering sepulchre in the vast abysses O f space,without atmosphere.

F or the benefit of any who may be anxious to find some p lace onthis high-pressure boi ler beyond reach of earthquakes and volcanoes , attention i s directed to a statement recent ly made by P rofessor T . J . J .

S ee, in charge of thenaval observatory atM are I sland , Cal. , and professorof mathematics in thenavy .

“T here are

°

a cons‘ iderable number of earthquakes which occur inland ,” said P rofessor S ee, “but it i s found that they all occur in regionsof abundant underground or meteoric water, whi le none at al l occur inthe great inland deserts . T he great deserts

,l ike S ahara, are the only

regions on the earth who l ly free from the danger of earthquakes , thoughin many p laces where the sea i s shal low and the rocks are litt le brokenthe leakage is very gradual , andno severe shocks occur.

“T his i s true forN orthern E uropeand theeastern part of theUnited

S tates , for example, and both of these reg ions are comparatively freefrom earthquakes . Indeep seas , wherethe pressure i s great, as along the

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182 S CI E N T I S T S DI S CU S S DI S A S T E R .

as the quake in San F rancisco . T he disturbance on the P acific coastextended foranarea of over 200 mi les , whi le theactual p laceof disturbance in I taly was very much smal ler .

“O f course, to the minds of the superstitious and the scientifical ly

disinterested, there i s in an earthquake an extraordinary element of unknown horror

,of an impending disaster that l ies under our feet, over

which we have no contro l , no forecast, and no means of protection. I t

comes suddenly and In a few seconds, perhaps , destroys hundreds ofthousands of human beings .

“T he actual mystery of the earthquake i s only partial ly explained in

scientific research,that

,by deductive theories , only manages to pacify

our awe of theunknown.

“T here are things we know about the interior of the earth, and

many things we don’ t know,but would l ike to . W eare ourselves merely

on the crust of the earth,which scientists have various ly estimated to be

from ten to fifty mi les below us . F rom the inner edge of thi s crus t tothe centre thereare, presumably, gaseous matter substances of excess iveheat.

H E A T A T E A R T H’S CE N T R E .

T he temperature of the centre of the earth , which has been sensationally declared to be ‘ inconceivable’ by F lammarion and others, is probably not so at all.

“Calculating a conception of these inner temperatures of the earth

by the increasing heat that miners find as they descend deeper and deeperinto it, i t may be assumed that the probable temperature of the centreof the earth is about equal to that of an arc l ight or an electric furnace,which is about 5000 to 6000 degrees F ahrenheit .

W e have a fair precedent for this theory in the temperatures takenin the Yel low Jacket M ine, in M ichigan, which I S

,perhaps

,the deepest

hole that has been made in theearth , extending a l ittle over amile fromthe surface toward the centre.

“In the deepest part of this mine the temperatures, which are not

much worse than the heat of a summer day in A ri zona, represent aboutone-four-thousandth of the entire distance from the surface of the earth

S CI E N T I S T S D I S CU S S D I S A S T E R . 133

to its centre. I f the increase in temperature occurs in the same ratio asour observation of i t in mines has shown, then we may assume that therei s in the centreof the earth a gaseous l iquid that has theextreme heat ofan electr i c furnace.

“S o far i t seemed that what we most feared was scientifically in

dorsed, namely, that theearth was a shel l fi l led with exp losive gases thatmight blow us all to kingdom come at any time. T his was not a scientificfact ,however, but merely a theory of modern sensationali st s .

“T he idea that this l iquid gaseous material in the centreof theearth

resembles a vast vo lumeof air, in a toy bal loon, for instance,” said ProiessorH al lock

,

“ i s not scientifical ly accepted .

T he entire earth i s pressure rigid .

I t i s subject to differences of load caused by the shifting of thatload . I t is the incessant readjustment of balances in the integral rigidityof the earth sphere that causes earthquakes .

E A R T H P R E S S U R E R I G I D .

I magine the tons upon tons that are carried from the mountainsto the seaby the rivers !

“T he M i ssissippi R iver alone probably bears continuous ly mi llions

of tons from the mountains to the ocean.

“N ecessari ly a pressure taken from one p lace and increased inan

other too suddenly causes a cave-in, or releases a pressure from below,

which makes theupheavals we call earthquakes .I t is an accepted theory in the scientific examination of the earth ’s

substance that it i s as nearly pressure so lid as i t can be,but not whol ly

so, a conc lusion that leads us to bel ieve that the adjustments of pressuresi s becoming steadier as theyears progress .

“T he laws of nature, that are ful l of surpri ses to the student as long

as he has l ife to pursue them,however, have a tendency to accomp l ish

these physical readjustments with an almost imperceptible balance.

“T he centre of the earth

,being a supremely heated conglomeration

184 S CI E N T I S T S D I S CU S S DI S A S T E R .

will perm it . U sually the pressure of these upper layers of earth keepsit from amelting process .

“A panof paraffin, for instance, when frozenover, causes an even

layerof thin so l id matter onthe top surfacewithout any vi sible disp lacement or diminution. T hat top surface i s susceptible to the pressure of anadditional load p laced upon it .

"

I f this new load is adjusted evenly it will make no crack or breakage in the frozen surface; it wi l l merely mix with the paraffin below,

without any sudden physical activity . But if the new load is put uponthe frozen surfaceof the paraffin unevenly it wi l l create a vi sible crackingand upheaval in the pan.

“S o thepressures of the earth ’

s surface, aboveandbelow, which areusual ly adjusted with a marvelous ly even distribution of the load , prevents upheavals , or, as the load is shifted suddenly from above, or fromsome p lace far below the crust of the earth , an upheaval occurs such asthe I talian catastrophe has shown us .

T he weight of the mountains of the earth , whose topmost peaksmay be below the level of the sea, or thousands of feet above the valley,are geo logical indications of prehistori c earthquakes . F ossil s have beenfound in mountains . I t is possible that these mountains were made suddenly in a titanic upheaval of the earth that l ifted them out of the bottomof the sea

‘ in the twinkling of an eye.

’

T E N M I L E S O F R O CK .

W ho knows why it i s hotter in the centreof the earth than on thesurface?

“T here is a theory that this chemical mystery in the bowels of the

earth is caused by radio activity . I don’t know .

T hen there is a theory that the coast l ines of the earth are moresusceptible to earth upheavals than places remote from the sea. T histheory is not fully sustained, because we have innumerable indicationsof earth tremors andosci llations in the interior of the land .

“W e know by calculations that the Jersey shore i s settling ; in the

S tate of Massachusetts there are perhaps 200 earth shocks of a sl ightnatureayear.

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136 S CI E N T I S T S DI S CU S S DI S A S T E R .

rectly involved in the earthquake in S icily was not h igher than that ofthe temperatureof an arc light, which is by no means inmonceivable. T he

surrounding pressures immediately contro l l ing the heated liquids of itscentre keeps that l iquid substance more or less hard , which constitutesour bel ief that the earth is pres sure rigid .

“T here i s no doubt that earthquakes are diminishing . T his i s easi ly

shown by comparing the history of theworld ’ s earthquakes as we knowthem according to the rapidity of geo logical changes .

“T he displacement shown by the cracks in the S anF rancisco earth

quakewere only a few feet .“G eo logical O bservation of prehistori c earthquakes S hows that the

earth made fissures and s l ides of feet . T ake the evidence in geological survey of M ount S hasta, in Cal ifornia, and the probable S outhA meri can catastrophes of prehistori c t ime.

“But there i s no actual scientific assurance of the breadth and im ~

m ensity of these gigantic upheaval s . W eare sti l l in a stateof theoreti calconc lusion about earthquakes . A ctually our knowledge i s comparativelyl imited ; there i s no possible forecast of earthquakes . T he seismographmerely registers a disturbancewhen it i s occurring .

“O f course, the human comprehension of an earthquake phenomena

is as primitive and terrifying as thunder and l ightning was once a fearfuldemonstration to primitive races .

P E O P L E A R E I N D I F F E R E N T .

Peop le continue to l ive on the s ides of vo lcanoes in the val leys oferuptive zones , with naive indifference to the danger about them . T heylearn no lesson in these disasters . T he region in which this I talian earthquake disaster occurred , although well known to be in the earthquakezone, had apparently quieted down.

W e associateearthquakes with eruptiveneighborhoods . I f the re«

cent upheaval of the earth had taken place in the S outh S ea I slands theworld would not have been so shocked . O f course

,the appal l ing loss of

l ife in the city of M essina was due to the fact that the houses were builtof stucco and stone. In S an F rancisco the greater part of the houseswere frame bui ldings of redwood .

S CI E N T I S T S D I S CU S S D I S A S T E R . 137

“A nother cause of destructionwas the tidal wave.

I t takes a comparatively smallupheaval-

oi the bottom of the oceanto make a huge and destructive tidal wave. A n upheaval that wouldmake a hole in the seabottom of forty or fifty feet would be enough toproduce a tida l wave twenty or thirty feet high .

“S o far as we can conceive, with the help of scientific precedent and

geological observation, thereare sections of the earth that have apparently become immune to earthquakes, but there i s no assurance of thematter. T he disaster in S ici ly was probably local , and could haveno forecast in it of simi lar disaster in any distance directly in line but awayfrom it .

“O ur observatory at Co lumb ia is in direct latitudewith an observa

tory in N ap les, but there i s no connection between longitudinal or latitudinal l ines around about theearth with earthquakes.

“In i t s scientific character the disaster in I taly is not so start l ing

or important as theearthquake in S anF rancisco, but its aspect of humancatastrophe has probably never been equal led in the history of man.

”

A N O T H E R S CI E N T I S T T H E O R I ZE S .

T here are so many superficial reasons given for the cause of earth ~

quakes ,” said P rofessor R obert T . H i l l , “that considering their apparently authentic sources are surprising.

“E arthquakes

,as terribleas they may seem when they destroy a few

thousand human beings , are but one of the many manifestations whichwe have of the world at work , andtheir full significance i s only comprehensible to one who has el iminated from h is mind the idea that we arel iving upon a dead and finished p lanet .

“T hat i s not only an old theory, but according to all the significant

indications of intel l igent scienceutterly untrue. T he earth i s not a deadp lanet , and very far from being a dying one. I ts activi ty is eternal, itsphysical vital ity is as restless and eager as the lifeof a growing child .

“T heearth is in a constant quivering tremor of constructive change.

I cannot understand haw the superficial impression prevails among somescientists that earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are signs of theearth ’s

138 S CI E N T I S T S D I S CU S S DI S A S T E R .

T heearth is agreat active, living, celestial mechanism , containingwithin its interior potent energies ever capable of repeating in the fu

ture processes which have taken p lace in the past .“T hese processes are not destructive by any means ; they are the

growing faculties , that instead of imperi l l ing the l ifeof theearth ,establ i sh

its indestructibi l ity .

“F rom the unexplored interior of the earth comes the creation of

such by-products as compose it s elementa l character .“T he crust upon which we l ive, the oceanic waters conceal ing a far

greater topography, and the atmosphere surrounding us, are but byproducts of the intensely heated , terribly expansive andever-active matterof the unexplored interior.

“I t has always been incomprehensible to m e, therefore, how the phe

nomenaof volcanic eruptions always seems to give the impression thatthe earth i s m astage of dissolution.

“H ow can dissolution occur in the actual expression of internal life

sources that these earthquakes so vivid ly declare for us ? T his material ,which is the inner meaning of the external l ife of our planet , has beenthe heart and blood of it s existence, continuously pulsating through itsterrestrial body, a physical certainty of growth .

“T he escape of this material to the exterior i s known as volcanism ,

andtheby-products of vo lcani sm are l iquids , sol ids and gases .

R O CK S A G E N E R I C T E R M .

T he solid by-product we call rocks , whether original vo lcani c ashor lava, or the watershed , far-transported muds of the ocean’ s border.

“T here is as distinct a purpose in thenatural law of volcanic eruption

as there is in the downfal l of rain that moistens the parasite life of plantson thecrust of theearth .

“T his rocky crust of the earth is always being added to by the vol

canoes and being torn down and washed away by the elements andthematerial deposited along seaborders . N ot only this . but the rocks arebeing folded, fractured andotherwise broken or deformed by the greatshrinking andsettling of the earth ’s crust as a whole.

“T he contraction of the earth ’

s sphere i s the physical shrinkage of

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140 S CI E N T I S T S DI S CU S S DI S A S T E R .

S ince this last submergence it has gradually risen to I 100 feet abovethe sea, al l draped or veneered with coral reef rock . T hemyth of theA tlantis ls undoubted ly founded on some occurrence of this kind .

“A ll vo lcanic action is constructive, not destructive, to the l ife of

the earth . I cannot see how it i s conceivable that we are on a dyingp lanet or on a combustible S phere that has no intel l igent purposes ofgrowth in its phenomena !

“I cannot see how theworld can come to an end inthe sensational

manner of some gigantic disaster.“I t i s foo l ish to anticipate or to attempt to predict the great earth

quakes with certainty, although sciencemay yet help us out .“I t i s certainly much more foo l i sh to encourage the i l literate and

superstitious in ideas that the world may come to an end, as was donein this city a few days ago.

“T he world can never come to an end!I tmay some day in the infinite future grow old

,ceaseworking and

quaking anddieas themoon as died . But even then it wi l l not come toanend

, nor wi l l i t be destructible.

“N o human mind of intel l igence can conceive of a method whereby

it can be destroyed .

“Better dream of i t as a future finished derel i ct in the great milky

way, or some other cemetery of finished p lants .

N O E A R T H Q U A K E W E A T H E R .

T he temperatureof the interior matter,in the centre of the earth ,

has been various ly calculated but I am not of the opinion that there isany certainty in these conclus i ons . T he temperatures that are formed inm ines , for instance, vary . T here is no scientific certainty

,therefore, in

these figures . T he scientist always encounters the unknown, the un

knowable, and we can only speculate to thebest of ourab i l ity by scientificprecedent , by weeding out the true from the false.

“F or instance there is animpression that there is acondition of the

S CI E N T I S T S D I S CU S S DI S A S T E R . 141

no prediction of anearthquake any more than sultry temperatures, orthunder andl ightning have anything to do with it .

T he c louds that usually hover over active vo lcanoes have no imm ediate relation with an earthquake, as i s frequently supposed . T he

clouds are a natural evaporation of the steam and gaseous substancesthrown out of the crater.

“T he p lant and forest l ifeof the crust of the earth is only a parasite

l ife that draws its substance and food from the universal volcanism thatsupp lies i t with material to blossom and flouri sh .

P roceeding from the contention that every part of the earth ’

s material i s a by-product of the inner activi ties of the centre of the earth

,

the world ’s obl igation to that activity makes the proces s of adjustingearthquakes a promising assurance of the continuity of our p lanet .

M O V E M E N T S G O I N G O N .

Quake movements, more or less imperceptible, are going onallthe t ime in many p laces every day . T here is no guarantee, nor, in viewof this theory, would we wish to have one, that the earth ’

s tremors wi l lcease.

“P rofessor Penek, the distinguished G erman geologist , with whom

the Kaiser recent ly honored this country by sending him as an interchange lecturer, gave an i l lustrated lecture in N ew York a few weeksago, wherein he showed the effects of some of the great movements ofthe folding and s liding A lps .

“T hese geologic movements are going on in many places to-day .

O ccasional ly they move with a jerk, and then it depends on who is intheway.

“T his i s what happened in the awful disaster in S icily, that has hap

pened in the. history of this world as far back as we can read about it .“N 0 one knows the hour or the placewhere themountains will sl ide

the land— but the earth must not be depr ived of itsto build

'

andrebuild , because its crust is inhab ited ,

142 S CI E N T I S T S D I S CU S S DI S A S T M .

S tates on sei smic disturbances, attributes the earthquakes in S outhernI taly to a genera l dropping or s inking of the earth inthat local ity .

“

S outhern I taly, said Doctor R eid , “ seems to be located in the

midst of what may be termed earthquake territory . S ei smic shocks occurtheremore frequent ly andatalmost regular, perhaps I should say, irregular intervals . T hewho le section of the country seems to be sinking inpieces, and I personal ly think that the shock was due to thi s general dropping down of that portion of theearth ’ s surface.

P rofessor W i l liam H . B rewer, of Yale, bel ieves the earthquake inI taly was due to the same conditions as that which caused the SanF rancisco disaster, namely, a faul t in theearth ’ s surface.

H e thinks what has been described as the tidal wave was a disturbanceof thewater in the S trai ts of M essina which causedi t to recede andthen to rush back, temporari ly engulfing the land which had sl ipped .

V I E W S O F O T H E R S CI E N T I S T S .

Prof. E ri c Doo l itt le, of the U niversity of Pennsy lvania , exp lainedthe causes , saying as a prelude that the “firm old earth was firm only bycomparison.

“U nti l twenty years ago, said the professor, i t was bel ieved that the

coreof theearth was a molten ball Darwin demonstrated that this couldnotbe so, andi t has come to bebel ieved that this core is as hard as steel .W ith this new bel ief came anew understanding of the causes of earthquakes . I t is no longer bel ieved that the lava from a volcano is belchedfrom this ball, following the breaking of the crust of the earth .

“V o lcanoes occur in mountainous districts, and mountain chains

follow the sea. T hemountains are regarded as rock formations pressedup through theearth by the pressure of the seaupon the earth ’ s surface.

T he mountains , in their pressure upon the substance which supportsthem , develop intense heat at theirhidden bases , creating mo lten massesthere. W hen the strain of their weight reaches acertain point balance isdisturbed and the earthquake results , with perhaps a discharge ‘

of this

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144 S CI E N T I S T S D I S CU S S D I S A S T E R .

earth this happens the movement wi l l expand to the surface; if not atonce, then sometime later on ; and this seems to be exact ly what happened in the cataclysm which vi s ited I taly .

“A nother point in connection with the unl imited abstraction of this

oi l from the earth I wi l l raise right here. H as any one ever ascertainedyet whether or not this same oi l , which is taken in mi l l ions of barrel syearly from the p lanet from which we al l derive our l iving , does not formanabso lute necess ity to the l ife of this same planet , as much neces sary,perhaps, as blood is to the l iving parasites on it ?

“N ature points a way to expel the unnecessary water by wel ls , and

for the gases i t provides vo lcanic craters ; but I have never heard of ariver of oi l, so it seems to m e that o ld mother earth needs it andwantsto keep it ; but as there are “mi l l ions in it, the oi l m en squeeze i t ournever minding about the future.

W i th reference to S i ci ly, i t is wel l to make note of the fact that anA merican volcano logist , F rank A lvord Perret , has predicted disaster onM ount E tna for two years past . M r. Perret, who was decorated by theCrown of I taly forhis sp lendid service to science and to humanity on V esuvius in 1906, wrote in the W orld ’s W ork of N ovember , 1907:

“By

the rationalmethods of scientific research , we know that a great eruptionof M t. E tna is impending

,the only uncertainty at present being which

sideof themountain wi l l break open.

”G reat volcanic eruptions arepre

ceded by great earthquakes, andtheM essina disaster came on anearthquake date terrestrial maximum of gravitational stress”) actual lyp latted in advanceby M r. Perret on his diagrams for 1908 .

L ike Dr. O mori , he is a man whose whole time i s unselfishly devoted to these studies , but he has no observatory and no adequate meansof support . A few business menin S pringfield , M ass , last year cameval iantly to his aid , and now their foresight is worthy of all honor. W henyoung m en think of making science their life-work , i t would be well toremember Pasteur and to consider careful ly whether the “highest” development of the investigative faculties may not concern itself with humane rather than with historical motives.

CH A PT E R X I I I .

M E S S I N A W R E CK E D M A N Y T I M E s .

— M 0U N T E T N A’

s W R A T H .-S CE N E O F

CA T A S T R O P H E .

—CI T Y F O U N D E D B Y P i R A T E s .

—I T s A W F U L H I S T O R Y .

— R E S E M B L E S L I S B O N — R E G G I O A N D I T s CA T H E D R A L .

TH E portions of S outhern I taly and S ici ly laid waste oy the earthquake, tidal waveand devastat ionof M ount E tna arenot only those

which have been most sorely affl icted in the past by great convulsionsof nature, but are thosewhich , for the sakeof art, historical interest andcertain commercial aspects of themselves and the world at large, werebest worth guarding against destruction.

T hepath of the great disaster ripped through the S trait s of M essina,with R eggio di Calabria as a start ing point . T hese two cities , M essinain S ici ly and R eggio

,her I tal ian neighbor, were more comp letely de

molished than any others , and from the population of these two weremost of the thousands of vi ctims of thegigantic death l ist contributed .

Catania, in S ici ly, the most populous city next to Palermo, but inreali ty scarcely more thana wraith of its ancient self, suffered incalculabledamage from the tidal wave which flanked the earthquake like a solidwall rising from the heaving seas .

S yracuse, oncethemost important of the S ici l iantowns , on the lowercurve of the bay, was swept by the tidal wave and the devastation included oneof the finest of the cathedrals of the country

M ount E tna, which disgorged itself steadi ly all day and poured itsdead ly lava down toward M essina, contributed to the s laughter a morevicious eruption than any s ince 1886.

M essma, which suffered most under the catastrophe, andwhich sacnficedmoreof her inhab itants to the final score of dead and injured , is ,

he capital,the chief commercial city of S ici ly, with

146 ME S S I N A W R E CKE D MA N Y T IM E S .

a university unexcel led elsewhere in S ici ly . I ts universi ty is si tuated onthe F aro, or S tretta de M essina, a promontory due north of the city ofM essina, which juts into the straits and reaches nearer to Calabria thanat any other point .

D irect ly across from the Promontory de F aro is the great Calabrianrock S cy l la, over which is the town S cylla .

T his rock and the whirlpoo l beneath it, both of which are now lostunder the lashings of theangry seas, formed the direful S cyl la of G reekmytho logy

,which with the Charybdis of eddies andunbrid led currents

in the straits , were thought by the ancients to be fraught with infinitedanger. T hese cross currents have in recent years been great ly tamed ,andS cyl la is a del ightful l itt le port with no reminiscent suggestion of herquondam horrors .

S CE N E O F CA T A S T R O P H E .

O nthe S ici lian shoreof these tumultuous straits i s a rangeof ruggedpeaks . T hey lend dignity andgrandeur to the wide stretches of scenery ,andare second in al l S ici ly only to Palermo .

T he harbor of M essina , which i s formed by a peninsula in the shapeof a sick le, was considered oneof the best in theworld andhas an extensive steamboat traffic .

In 1899 , steamers entered the port, and sai l ing ships ,though more recent ly the trade has fallen behind that of Palermo .

O ranges and lemons are the chief export,and of thesemore leave Mes

sina than are sent from the who le of I taly . A lmonds,si lk

,ol ive oi l and

wines have been staple exports also .

M essina was, comparatively speaking, well constructed throughout .I t had several beautiful streets

,chief among which i s the V ia G ari

baldi , named after h is memorable invasion of S ici ly when M essina washis point of attack .

About the edge of the brilliant harbor runs the M arino,or Corso

V ittorio E manuele.

Parallel to the M arino andthe V ia Garibaldaare the Corso GaourandtheV iadei M onasteri .

T he original city lay between the torrents of Portaelgni, but it was

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148 ME S S I N A W R E CK E D MA N Y T IME S .

axi las, the tyrant of R hegium, who introduced M essenians from the Pel

oponnesus, by whom the name was changed to M ess ina. T he tyrant ’ ssons were expel led a few years after his death and the constitution wasre-establ ished .

Inthe great A thenian war with S yracuse the city remained neutral .In396 B . C. the town was destroyed by the Carthaginians but was

rebui lt a few years later by D ionys ius of S yracuse only to fal l again intothe hands of the Carthaginians under H annibal in 269 .

T he first Punic war,however, left the p lace in the hands of the

R omans andthe p lacewas of importance second only to that of S yracuseand L ilybaeum in S ici ly during a period of R oman occupation lasting forseveral centuries .

In831 A . D . the town was taken by the S aracens , but in 1061 i t wastaken from them by the N ormans .

I T S E V E N T F U L H I S T O R Y .

T he city prospered great ly during the Crusades being a favoriterendezvous for so ldiers from the Continent en route to the H oly L and .

IntheM idd le A ges also it became a flourishing commercial city .

I ts commercial importance disappeared after a b itter struggle between the ari stocrati c faction

, or M erl i,and the democratic faction, or

Maviz z i, in 1674 . T he democratic faction appealed to the F rench and

the other to the S paniards .T he former faction were at first victorious but eventual ly were de

sertedby the F rench , the city was taken by the S paniards , and when thestruggle was over the population was reduced from to about atenth of that number .

T he town never ful ly recovered from this disaster. W hatever recovery was made was neutral ized in the eighteenth century by a seriesof disasters .

In 1740 about persons died of the plague, and in 1783 the

town was almost entirely overthrown by the great earthquake of that

ME S S I N A W R E CK E D MA N Y T I M E S . 149

T he choleracarried off no fewer than vi ctims in1854 , andearthquakes m 1894 and 1906a lso caused loss of l ife and property .

In 1860 the town was occupied by G aribaldi . I t became a part ofunited I taly the fo l lowing year .

Inrespect to the feature apparently resulting in the greatest loss ofl ife the M essina disaster bears a close resemblance to the great earthquake of L i sbon

,which

,on N ovember 1 , 1755, laid half the city in ruins

and caused the death of approximately persons .Catania, just at the foot of M ount E tna, which is shar ing the honors

between the t idal wave and streaming lava, is the most populous city ofS ici ly except Palermo .

I t i s the seat of a b ishop , and a university founded in 1445, which atthe present time has students

,theflower of the intel lect of I taly. I t

i s s ituated about themidd le of the east coast of S ici ly and i s one of thebusiest and most prosperous parts of the is land .

R E S E M B L E S L I S B O N .

A mong other native products of the ri ch and fertile district about itare W ine, grain, linseed andalmonds , whi le largenatural deposits of sulphur addmaterial ly to the wealth of the community.

Ful ly vessels enter andclear the port annually . Catania is theseat of a notable A cademy of Natural S ciences , founded in 1823.

I t has taken a prominent part in investigating and developing the

natural resources of S ici ly, particularly has attention been paid to the

possibi l ity of earthquakes , and every possible research has been madethat might serve to givewarning of impending catastrophe and thus minimize the damage and loss .

md ME S S I N A W R E CK E D,

MA N Y T IM E S .

tales wh ich are connected with the many disasters which have overtaken i t .

In that catastrophe the M onti R ossi was upheaved , and anarm of

the lava stream 14 mi les in length and 25 feet in width , flowed in the

direction of the town. T he pious inhabitants , however, so the storygoes , averted its course by extending the vei l of S t. A gatha toward it,in consequence of which the stream took a westerly direction near theBenedictine M onastery, and descended into the sea to the southwest ofthe town, part ly fi l l ing its harbor.

A nearthquake in 1693 wiped out every vestige of the then city andaffected the who le i s land .

A lthough the scene of a wealth of c lassic historical and l iteraryevents, not a single structure in the p lace antedates the year of this greatdisaster.

D E E P B U R I E D R U I N S .

A number of interesting and important ruins have been discoveredin the city, deep buried by the centuries .

In the eighteenth century the first of these were made by P rinceI gnazio B i scari . H is co l lections , which G oethe v isi ted in 1787, are ex

h ibited in the Museo B i scari , one of the notable sights of Catania, nowprobably reduced to wreckage.

A mong other s ights of Catania which attract touri sts are a noblestatue of S t. A gatha, on an ancient co lumn, in the P iazza de M artiri ; itsfamous antiqueelephant in lava, bearing an E gyptian obel isqueof granite,one of the most notable curios of I taly, its history shrouded in mystery .

T he wreck of a cathedral begun in 109 1 is al so to be seen. T he

bui lding was almost entirely destroyed by an earthquake in 1 169 . T he

apses and part of one transept alone remain, except for two sarcophagicontaining the dust of fourteenth century rulers of the A ragonese fami ly .

A chapel of S t. A gatha contains the relics of the saint , who was cruel lyput to death in thereign of Decius, 252 A . D .

,by the praetor Q uintianus ,

whose overtures she had rejected . H er crown is said to have been presented by R ichard Coeur de L ion.

O ne of these sarcophagi i s conveyed through the ci ty during the

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152 ME S S I N A W R E CK E D MA N Y T IM E S .

their rebui lding processes . I ts streets arewide and beautifully kept, andits out lying sections are studded with numerous beautiful villas.

T he R eggio Cathedral , a spacious basi l ica with pi l lars , dated fromthe seventeenth century . T he Capel la de S acramento, to the left of thehigh altar, was r ich ly adorned with colored marbles . O nthe facade i s aquotation from the A cts of the A post les . T hewide, straight P iazza delDuomo descends from the heart of the city straight to the sea, wherethe ancient baths of the G reek and R oman periods , with exquisite mosaics

,and elaborate heating apparatus , have been excavated .

A djacent was the interesting M useo Civico , containing fine terracottas

,lamps

,vases

,statuettes , and examp les of cur ious early native art

with unusual decorations— now all probably lost to the world as theA lexandrian tomes .

O ne of the most interesting works in the col lection in the MuseoCivico was a rel ief of women dancing of th e sixth century B . C. , withits architectura l framework painted black, redand yel low. O ne of the

far-famed L aocoon groups was also housed here.

S M A L L CI T I E S W H O L L Y O B L I T E R A T E D .

Inthe piazza adj oining the railroad station was a fine statueof G aribaldi , under which a mi l itary band often p layed . Back of R eggio reststhe imposing, forest-clad A spromonte, due north of which is S cyl la.

T he smal ler cities which are buried under the streams of lava ordeluged with the s l ime and water of the tidal waves al l bear the samegeneral characteristics of these three cities whose share of the burdenwas heaviest .

A ll the sm al l cities in S ici ly and Calabria have kept their litt le quotaof historical rel ics jealous ly guarded against invasion and sacrilege. E achhas been forced to bui ld over again the homes and streets in which itspopulace j oyed . E ach has ~known the same tribulation

,learned through

long sojourn near E tna, thegreat monster of S outhern I taly and S i ci ly .

M any of the very small cities were wholly obliterated,particularly

the tiny coast towns which edge the harbor.S o much for the histori cal

,topographical and physical fe

ME S S I NA W R E CKE D MA N Y T IME S . 153

worse cursed on theother. Y et i t is by delving into the persona l characteristics of the peop le that one best learns to sympathize with them in

their misfortune and to appreciate their fortitude under circumstancesthat would upset themental poise of a farmore ph legmatic people.

T hese personal pecul iarities have frequent ly beencommented uponbut a repetition of some of the odd things in that land of contrasts maynot be inappropriate at the present time and in the present connection.

In travel ing about I taly, especial ly through the stricken regions ofS i ci ly andCalabria, says M . J . R eyno lds, an A merican sees a number ofthings which strike him as funny. F or instance

,an I tal ian wil l take his

wife into the smoking car with him and give her a cigarette to smokeinthemost unconcerned manner in the world . N o car is set asideas asmoker, in A meri can fashion, but in certain compartments of the regularcars smoking is a l lowed and in others not ; and women sit inthe smokingcompartments as much as in the others . I f they did not they would notsit anywhere. T he smal l size and crowded condit ion of I talian cars areastonishing to A mericans .

S T R A N G E T O A M E R I CA N S .

T he fact that no trunks are carried free i s another surpri se. T here

sult of the latter regulation i s that no one travels with a trunk in I taly .

H e carries , instead , an amount of hand luggage which is appal l ing ; andwhen there i s no space left for i t in the racks of the compartments , pilesi t up , mountains of i t, inthe tiny footway which runs between the endsof the compartments and the s ideof the car, until this passage is almostimpassable.

T here i s no drinking water on the cars . A t the stations a waterseller may come by and sel l youa glass of water for a cent , but I havetraveled for hours on a hot summer day without happening to strike awater sel ler atany stop , or being able to get a drink .

154 M E S S I N A W R E CK E D MA N Y T IM E S .

to read on the trains ; and off the main lines of travel noth ing canbe

bought at the depots excepting water and dry bread .

I have traveled for hours in S ici ly and seen nothing else for sale atany station. I have seen a city of inhabitants in S ici ly where therewas abso lutely not one thing either to eat or drink to behad in the stationor anywhere around it .

T he nearest restaurant was many blocks away, in the bus iness distriet . O ne cannot imagine a rai l road station in anA mer ican city of thatsize which would not be surrounded with eating and drinking places .

T he fact marks one vast point of difference between the I tal ian andA merican publ ic . A ll that careless, useless , unnecessary eating anddrinking which goes on in A merica of nuts , candy, fruit , sandwiches , icecream , soda water, tea, coffee, beer, and so on, does not exist in I taly .

T he I tal ian eats when hunger obl iges him to eat. I t i s with the

greatest rarity that he buys anything to eat simply because i t looks niceandhe thinks it would taste good .

I CE CR E A M U N A P P R E CI A T E D .

T he amount which the cafe m en have to give to induce I ta l ians toeat ice cream is astonishing . I taly is ful l of outdoor cafes chantants insummer . A musical programme i s given from 8 to 1 1 , or longer , andeverybody passing can hear this , so that the proprietor real ly furnishesfreemusic forthepubli c ; and thepubl ic stands outsidetherai l and l i stens ,in enormous crowds .

An amount of S pace which in N ew York would cost a prodigioussum is fi l led with chairs and tables which begin to fi l l early in the evening by thosewho want good places .

T hemost expensive i ces at these places in N aples cost twelve cents ,and they run down to six . Besides that there are half portions ; andwhen a family party comes in of several members , two or three of theorders are sure to be half portions . I have seen persons loaded withjewels order half portions . F or this sum they occupy their chairs thewhole evening. T hey never order a second time.

T hus the ice becomes a function ; a reg ular . establ i shed institution ,

a Show ticket anda means of '

enjoying the society of one’s fel low m en.

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156 ME S S I N A W R E CK E D M AN Y T IME S .

N ew A nthropology lying open on h is table,and he was well informed

in the history of the p lacehe showed . A t parting I gave him four centswith fear and trembling, reflecting what any city jailer in A merica woulddo to me if I offered him four cents .

But the guardian of this classic spot took it and said T hank you ;andtherewere two of us.

A t the R oyal Palace at G enoa there i s a perfect ly astounding personage at the door ; the most imposing creature I ever saw except theP ope’ s guard at the V atican in their crimson uniforms, designed byM i chelangelo .

T hi s G enoa man is a giant , and he wears the most elegant c lothes ,finished off with themost sumptuous tall si lk hat . H e took my umbrel laaway from m e when I went in. A ll over I taly they take your umbrel laaway from you and you have to pay to get i t back I always pay twocents, as the I tal ians do ; but I confess when I thought of offering thatsplendid creature two cents the cold chi l l s ran up and down my spine.

I thought of making it three, but what was thegood of three ? Nothing less than a dollar would go with those c lothes .

T I P S K E E P Y O U G U E S S I N G .

S o I braced my courage to the sticking point and tipped him the twocents, and he not only took it and said “thank you

,but lifted his hat

and smi led upon me in truly royal fashion. W hat is one to think of aman 6 feet 2 , who wears that k ind of clothes, who will do al l that for twocents ?

T his who le subject of tips is a disagreeable one to the tourist . H e

feels picayunish to be considering these small amounts all the time, yet

since it is a constant outgo every time he turns around they form an appreciable i tem in his expense account .

H e does not wish to bemean,or to be thought mean

, yet there is noreason why he should pay 100 per cent . , not to speak of 400 or 500 percent . , more than others pay for exact ly the same service.

I f the thing could only be gotten to a business basis, so that on

going to a hotelof a certain gradeand p r i cehewould know that on leav

M E S S I N A W R E CK E D M A N Y T I M E S . 157

designated receptacle a certain sum for the emp loyes , to be divided asthey saw fit, he and they would know what to expect .

But this is the last thing on earth they wish to do in I taly . T heywish to leave i t al l in uncertainty, so that they may profit by the ignorance or the generosity of the touri st . H alf the t ime when one asks thepriceof some smal l servi ce they wi l l rep ly, with a flourish : “

W hatever thes ignor wishes .

”

F or instance, I hadbeen inthehab i t of going to a certain convenientshoeblack stand inM essina to get my shoes po l ished . T he first time Iasked the man “

H ow much ?” and he rep l ied , with extreme po l iteness,

as if it werean affair betweenprinces : “W hatever you wish .

”I gavehim

4 cents, and continued thereafter to pay that sum .

M U S E U M A T T E N DA N T S .

A fter a whi le I found that nobody in I taly ever gives more than 2

cents to have his shoes shined . T hat sort of thing multip l ied by everyhour in the day grows i rri tating . Inmuseums attendants come up andaddress smi l ing ,

p leasant remarks to the touri st , vo lunteering bit s of information about any object at which he may be looking . I f he answersthis remark civi l ly

,or answers i t at al l , i t simp ly means a tip .

H e fo l lows you,keeps up the conversation, andyou must pay to be

r id of him .

T he attendants in the N ap les Museum are the most shameless inI taly about thi s . T he only way in which one can protect himself i s notto answer them at al l when they speak to him ,

or to turn on them blunt lyand say that he wants nothing ; neither of which processes is civi l nor

M E S S I N A W R E CK E D MA N Y T IME S .

man. I f i t is the G overnment which does not pay its emp loyes enough tol ive, and leaves them to get their salary out of the publ ic in this manner,i t i s a despicable system ,

andtheman' i s not to blame.

I f the G overnment does not pay a l iving wage, then theman lowershimself to the level of the beggars who flock every door which touri stspass .

T he system fo l lows one into the churches . E ntrance i s nominal lyfree, but inside various persons fol low one about in search of a tip , afterthe styleof themuseum attendants .

Certain portions of the church also wi l l be closed , andyou have topay some one to unlock the door ; or a printed notice wi l l state that thiscanbe seen only by “permission to be had at some distant point ; butthis “permi ssion” always means something s l ipped in the attendant ’shand .

O f courseonemay say that these tips are a very smal l price to payfor seeing bui ldings famous in history and art , which i s perfect ly true.

O nthe other hand , it i s becauseof these bui ldings that touri sts spend arrnually mi l lions in I taly, showering a rain of gold upon her rai l roads,hotels and shops .

T ake the touri st business out of I taly and the country would s ink instantly to a poverty and misery undreamed of in her direst straits .

S I G N S A R E N E E DE D .

I twould be a distinct convenience to travelers if they would put upa sign in the N ap les Museum ,

“Questions A nswered , O neCent E ach .

”

W eare a business people. W eare wi l l ing to pay the regular priceforanything wewant , if we can only find outwhat it i s . But i t i s wearingto feel that one i s ei ther covert ly smi led at for a greenhornor cursed fora miser with every tip hegives .

T hree t imes only have I had tips refused in I taly ; as i t so happened ,all by women, all in or near M essina, andall tips which were well deserved . O newas after a long andtrying siege of dressmaking in adcpartment store. T he dressmaker had been most obliging andefficient,andat the end I felt l ike giving her something for herself, aside fromwhat I paid the store. Smilingly but most firmly she refused .

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160 ME S S I N A W R E CKE D MA N Y T IME S .

might be in charge that I was a stranger, about to leave the city, and thatI would like very much to seewhat was inside.

I received permission to enter, andwas looking about with muchinterest when a civi l-spoken man appeared and began to exp lain thingsH e showed m e al l about with the greatest courtesy, whi le I meanwhi lewas consumed with inward anxiety as to whether I should tip him or not .T here was no sign to tel l me who or what he was .

H ewas educated , but then so was the archaeo logical jai ler who tookmy four cents . But I looked this man in theeye, I took h is measure anddecided he was not to be tipped .

T henext day on the street with anI tal ian acquaintance I noticed mymuseum friend .

“T here,” said I , there’ s theman who was so nice to me in the mu

scum .

N O W O N D E R H E L A U G H E D

M y companion choked with laughter.“I

’

dhave given a do l lar,” said he, “ to have seen you try to tip him2 cents . T hat ’s Count Pepoli , the founder of the museum .

I taly would gain friends and lovers also by keeping her beggars offthestreets . H ow can any one respect a municipal ity which sadd les off th esupport of it s paupers upon strangers and foreigners ? And which permits chi ldren to grow up beggars in the face and eyes of the publ ic , begging every day at the same p lace and putting in regular business hoursat it, whi le a man or woman stands by and teaches them the trade? A ndi t i s al l unnecessary .

T here is not a beggar in M i lan,F lorence or G enoa . M i lan and G e

noa are great, modern, industrial and commercial cities . T here i s moreprosperity and less poverty there. But there must be poverty in F lorence, she is neither industrialnor commercial , and she has no beggars .

N ei ther do the street salesmen of postal cards and souvenirs makenuisances of themselves. T hey ask you once to buy, and if you refusethey say no more.

M E S S I N A W R E CK E D MA N Y T IM E S . 161

nectedwi th. F lorence, in al l herways and manners, there i s a refinement,a self-respect, a dignity and courtesy which give a charm to l ife.

T he voices of the F lorentines are soft and sweet ; their manners arepleasant andkind ; their ci ty is c lean and beautiful ; their hotels and restaurants good and cheap . A ndthat city is belted andcircled with wealth .

F or mi les in every direction the great v i l las are owned by rich A mericans

,E ngl ish and G ermans , who l ive there permanent ly S imp ly because

i t i s such a plasant p lace to l ive and spend money in.

S ici ly is by no means a bad p lace for beggars, although nowhere inthe kingdom is poverty deeper. T here i s a sort of fierceness of prideabout the S i cilian

i

which impel s him to put up a good front to theworldin the midst of his starvation.

In s ix months in S i ci ly I never saw a woman barefoot , though onecan see them every hour in N aples and al l along the R iviera, east andwest of G enoa .

T o the S ici l ian’

s notions it would be indecent for his women fo lk togo barefoot, and somehow or other he wi l l keep them shod . N eitherdid I ever seewomen inS ici ly dragging heavy trucks ful l of freight, whichI saw both in P i sa and Como .

A F R E Q U E N T P L E A .

T he hotbed of beggary in I taly is N ap les , and the beggar ’s p lea inN ap les is appal l ing to the A meri canwho understands i t . T he gent lemanwho is “carrying the banner” or “panhand l ing” in N ew York, or whofinds his way up to one’ s kitchen door in the apartment house, says !L ady

, I’

ve lost me j ob and ain’t been able to find no work yet Couid

162 M E S S I N A W R E CKE D MA N Y T IM E S .

ples —andone comes upon her si tting on the cold stonepavement, s leeping with her head against the stone wal l behind , and two or three l ittlechi ldren hudd led around her, s leeping with their heads in her lap, notoneof them with shaw l or wrap .

S he rouses from her lethargy, and after the passerby comes her

ghast ly cry, “F or the loveof G od, weare starving to death— one penny ,

one penny !” so it goes , night and day, in N ap les .

R ome is not so bad , but there the p lace of the beggars is taken bythe postal card and souvenir sel lers , who almost destroy the pleasure oflife. T hey stand in crowds about every point where tourists pass , andsurround them in gangs with persistent appeals to buy .

T he only recourse i s to order them off brutal ly . A civi l refusal tobuy has no effect . T his i s al l an unnecessary infl iction upon the tourist,for i t does not exist in F lorence.

V enice i s almost as badas N ap les for beggary, and, considering itss i ze, P i sa i s the wors t l itt le s ink of beggary in I taly . In V enice I encountered beggars who had learned F rench to beg in just l ikea guide ora courier . But in P isa there were beggars who had learned E ngl i sh tobeg in, which is the funniest thing in all I talian baggardom . I had longknown begging fora profess ion, but in P isa it is a learned profess ion.

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164 W H O S H A L L I MM O R T A L I ZE T H E T RA G E DY ?

Call of theB lood, a study of the S ici l ian character, and even of the S icil~ian shorenot far from where chaos and death now reign ; and no longerago than last year he publ i shed a sequel to that, wherein he strayed fromhis vi l la in T aormina to the Bay of N ap les .

Y et— it i s neither H i chens , H arland , H ewlett , Crawford, nor therest of thosewho, in our language, have painted I taly and the I tal iansi t i s noneof these forwhom onenow longs , seeking the proper voice forthis emergency ; i t i s for the voice and the penof L ouise de la R ameethat this occasion cr ies . F or shealone, of al l , had ever in her heart thepiteous case of the I talian peasant, the I tal ian country .

H ewlett paints thepeasant and the p lace, i t i s true; but he uses bothas s imp ly decorative subjects for his gorgeous prose; sp lendid and beautiful women, strong passions , sumptuous co lors hold him ; he gives uscanvases that g low with sunshine and v ivid l ife. O f poverty, O ppression,or any of thegray

,drab things of l ife, he tel ls us nothing . O nly one told

us of the bitter l ives lived by the country people in those sunny lands ;that one was O uida.

I N T H E PA G E S O F O U I DA .

W hen O uida was in herlast decl ine at V iareggio the present writer,being then inF lorence, fellwith a new zest to re-reading a l l those manytales of hers which paint I tal ian life. W hat a wonderful array it is ! T heco lor and the passion splashed on with a vigor and a richness that wouldfurnish a dozen of our quotidian successes in the field of fiction ; allowingfor exaggeration, for i llogic bursts of i ll-considered rage, and for al l thefaults her enemies ever accused her of, i t is sti l l in the pages of O uidathat we must look for, first ly

, the best account of social, fashionable l ifein the A nglo -I tal ian colonies of F lorence, and, second ly, the real life ofthe I talian peasant .

InH ewlett i t is ever the lust of theeye. InO uida it is always thenote of pity. I t i s true enough that you wi ll not find the Calabrian orthe S ici lian specified in the pages of O uida. I t i s mostly, where shede

scends to detai ls , the countryman of T uscany, of the A bruzzi, or theA pennines.

W H O S H A L L I M M O R T A L I ZE T H E T R A G E DY ? 165

A ndwhat a fight that was ! In her novels, in her articles for theE ngli sh reviews, always . for a score of years, she to ld the tale of G overnment and bureaucratic oppression of the peasant , and in innumerableways she tried to swing theworld ’

s pity toward that pitiable creature.

Do you think of the I tal ian as the happy, singing creatures or simp ly as the prosperous person who sel ls you bananas onthe corner, or asthe grinning N eapo l itan who dives after the pennies you have thrownhim from your steamer ? W el l, then do you not know the poverty andmisery of him ; you must re-read your O uida.

W as there ever penned , for instance, a more elaborate phi lippicagainst G overnment oppression of the I tal ian peasant than this author ’ snovel , T heW aters of E deraP” N or, if you would understand what sortof creatures in our human fami ly are these now homeless on the shoresof the M essina S trait , can you do better than read those tender tales ,“T he S i lver Christ” and “

A L emon T ree .

”

H avewenot elsewheregiven you pictures of those stricken wretchespraying and forming processionals amid the ruined streets and lanes ?You wi l l find their types, to the immediate letter, in any of th ose earlystories named .

O U I DA’

S F A V O R I T E S U BJE CT S .

S he wrote of T uscany andUmbria, i t i s true; but , if never before,she would have been the first to writeequal ly vivid ly of these Calabriansand S icilians who now wai l and mourn.

S uch of us as know our I taly ever so li tt le know that the I taliansof thenorth were wont to look askance upon those of the south . I f youal leged to an I tal ian of the north that you found the I tal ian in A mericaby no means the best of citizens ; if you referred to theM afia or the Camorra

,or the l ike, he simp ly shrugged h is shoulders , and said

“A h , i t is those rascals of southerners you mean !”

166 W H O S H A L L IMMO R T A L I ZE T H E T R A G E DY ?

passionately of al l, since i t is on the peasants whom she loved , the I taliancountry she adored, that this terrible grief has fallen.

H ere, then, is a curious point . N o writer who ever lived in hertime hated G overnments more, more b itterly assai led the p lagueof modernity, and more O penly despised A mer ica, than O uida.

W hat would she have said had she seen therest of the world as now,

ledby A mer ica, coming to the rescue of the countrymen shemost loved ?N ever did she lose a chance to berate those authori ties who, in theirgreedy reach for modernization,

went about destroying histor ic p laces ;yet here has come the vast destroying hand of E arth herself, ruining farmore than did those who removed the O ld centre of F lorence, or whodesecrated the O rti O ricellari, or theV i l la d’

E ste. W hat would she havesaid to this ?

S O M E O F O U I DA’

S D~I S L I K E S .

G overnments, K ings, and democracies al ike, she loathed , becausethey oppressed and neg lected her beloved peasants . T o-day she wouldsee the greatest R epubl i c in the world hurrying rel ief to S ici ly ; a K ing ,

a Queen, Dukes , M arquises— they have a l l been doing what they could ,not by sitting at home and writ ing orders , but there, on the spot, in theflesh . H ere had been food for L ouisede la R amee’ s thought .

H ow shewas wont to raveat thosebl ind municipal authorities whomshe thought determined to make “a petty maritime P i ttsburg”

of V enice.

H ow she abominated the “contractors,concessionaires , and jerry

bui lders , and bureaucratic thieves and foreign speculators” whom sheao

cusedof conspiring to ruin her beloved ancient I taly !Y etall that they did is little compared to what has now been done

by N ature herself, the greatest i conoclast of all.S he wrote, once, of U baldino Peruzzi , whom especially she loathed

as the foremost of those attempting to H aussmanize o ld I taly,that “his

dead hand stil l directs the scrambl ing haste” with which historic spotsare being effaced in order that “a general reign of stucco and shoddymay, as faras in them l ies , bring theA thens of I taly to a levelwi th some

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168 W H O S H A L L I MM O R T A L I ZE T H E T R A G E DY ?

A h , if O uida were al ive to point the way. F or, as she herself nevertired of pointing out, i t i s the R uskins— the foreigners , in short— whohave ever condemned the destruction of the O ldhistoric p laces ; the I talians themselves have but too seldom protested . T o-day, too, what arethe only steamship l ines refusing to take suppl ies from A merica to I talyfree? N ot thoseof the forestieri .

I t i s as wel l , from one v iewpoint , that L ouise de la R amee diedwhen she did . O ldand emb ittered , she might not have survived sucha calamity ; she loved the I tal ian country peop le far too wel l . S ometimesonewonders if they know

,those country peop le, just how wel l she loved

them . T hey cannot read thosewonderful pages of hers . But we,

who have read them,know that

,had she been in her prime when those

blows fel l on I taly,she would have dipped her pen in blood , in pity, and

in death,so that we had been the richer .

A nd surely,seeing those ships that come to the I tal ian shores laden

with compassion and its proofs,she would have withdrawn that word :

“T here i s no true compassion inthat crowd of oppressed yet mixing

races which , forwant of a better word , we cal l themodern world .

F R E N CH P R O M P T N E S S P L E A S E D T H E M .

A F rench fleet of a dozen vessel s speeding from T oulon to carrysuccor to themassacred S ici lian cities , apparent ly str ikes the I tal ians withmore significance than al l the other swift aid sent the sufferers , for thecable stops in the do lorous recital of themiseries of the scene to exp lainthat the ships sai led as if sped by love.

T heword probably is meant to remind I talians that when the F renchcan show sol icitude for S i ci l ians past memor ies have become very dim ,

for during more than six hundred years thename S ici l ian has beena reminder to the F rench of about the same sort that L imeri ck suggests tothe I ri sh

,though the causes were far different .

M essina was not the scene of the outbreak of the S ici l ian V espers ,but , l ike every other local ity in the i s land , once the massacre of theF rench began theM essinians p l ied their daggers and wgeance w i th the characteri stic ferocity O f a racemadeu

W H O S H A L L IMM O R T A L IZE T H E T R A G E DY ? 169

A side from the S ici l ian V espers, recalling the utter annihilation ofan invading race, S i ci ly and its neighboring shores have other vengefulmemories forthe F rench . I twas on the shore just across from M essina,in Calabria, that M urat , the “

K ing Joachim”of N apo leoni c creation,

trusting himself to the loyalty of his former subjects,m et the ignominious

fate the M exicans dealt the A rchduke M aximi lian, when he, too , fanciedthat his great reputewould ingratiate his imperial person to the S panishresidue of M exico . I t was in S ici ly that the F rench legions , irresistibleeverywhere else, m et the few defeats that signal ized theearly days of thecontinental conquest .

B oth s ides,the S ici l ians and the F rench , retain a long memory on

theS i ci l ian V espers, forwhen thesonof L ouis P hi l ippe,the F rench K ing,

inherited an immense estate in the envi rons of Palermo , his kinsmen,

the rul ing B ourbon,were obl iged to see that he was secure by covert ly

instal l ing addit ional gensdarmes in the v icini ty of the Duke d’

A umale’

s

dominions .

W hen in 1867V erdi , the H omer of composers , daringly selected themassacre as the text of his E xpositionopera

,

“T he S ici l ian V espers , the

musica l directors of the F rench commission were aghast , but the musicserved as a reconci l ing chord instead of reviving the supposed inveteratehate that hadrankled for centuries .

S I CI L Y A N O T H E R I R E L A N D .

S et fortl: truthful ly, the “V esper massacre had nothing to wound

the sensib ilit ies of the F rench,forthe invading princes of A njou who held

the i s land werenot in the least interesting to the F rench people. T heyhad been the “

Cobourg s”of F rance forgenerations .

T hat is,they werebred l ike rabb its and the stalwart youths seeking

their fortu-‘nes,principally thrones, came present ly to figure as monarchs

170 W H O S H A L L I MM O R T A L I ZE T H E T R A G E DY ?

T he S ici l ians had borne the same excesses that went on in I relandwith a patience that argued neither spiri t nor resentment on their part ,when during the spring days of 1282 a scenenot unl ike the incident thatforms the modus of “

V irg inius, .ddenly uncovered the flame longsmouldering among gent le and simp le.

T he A njou K ing was not evenpresent when the insurrection brokeout . H e held the i s land under subjection through the threatening of

forty-two fortresses , the stoutest of them hard by M essina ; with thesestout cast les were scattered about mountain gorges , and so ldiery couldsignal from end to endof the i sland in case of need . T he great nobleswho had inherited S i ci ly from centuries of warrior parents

,had been di s~

possessed of their domains anddriven into exi le or held in humi l iatingrepression .

T ax gatherers swarmed th rough the sunny lands exacting the lastcentessim i

, evenbefore the harvests were gathered , for the A ngevines inS ici ly were l ike their kinsmeninB ritain

,constant ly inneed of money .

H erbert , of O rleans, V iceroy of the kingdom for Charles of A njou,

A N E A R L Y T R A G E DY .

held S ardanapal ian sway in Palermo , then one of the most magnificentcapitals of S outhern E urope. G uarded by A njou so ldiery

,the V iceroy

andhis A ngevineminions enforced dissolute sway in the capital,treating

thenatives with arrogant disdain. I t was when the S i ci lians seemed degraded beyond even anaspirat ion for better things that the spark struck .

N ot far from Palermo near the banks of the sylvan stream O reto,there

stood a chapel dedicated to the H o ly S piri t . I t was bui lt in a bloomingplain and from its porch a wide esp lanade wound through exotic shrubbery to the royal palace in the heart of the city.

O n E aster T uesday of the year 1282, the pious citizenry flocked

along this vernal highway to and from the Church of the H o ly S pirit, I t

seemed an agreeable divers ion for the gal lants among the A ngevine sol

diery to mingle among the pious throngs and “skylark” with thedamselsas they wended demurely with their sweethearts to the E asterfestivities .

O ne charming damsel , escorted by her fiance,became the object of

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172 W H O S H A L L IMM O R T A L I ZE T H E T R A G E DY ?

the island . M assacre was the business of the peop le until every one

bear ing a F rench name, or convicted of sympathy with them, was butchered .

T he F rench were extingui shed as a dominating power, for thoughthe A njou princes sti l l c laimed right to ruleby heritage, other pretendersfound their misfortunes an opportunity, and even though the S ici l iansrid themselves of the A ngevines , they only changed one race of tyrantsfor another .

S pain laid its hideous hand on the i sland and for centuries i ts eviladministration made the A ngev ine interval seem humane and tolerable. T o

this day whenever the traveler enters memorial edifices , ancient convents

,ruined monasteries , the “ custode” with many portentous precau

tions, uncover rel ics , which they aflirm ,come from the great V esper day.

S cores of F rench “voyageurs have vis ited the i sland to describe i tsmarvels , and in the pages of a l l of them there are al lusions that provehow strangely the memory of the V espers c l ing to the consciousness ofthe two races .

T H E I M A G E O F I T A L Y ’

S S O U L .

S ome of the most eminent of the modern F rench litterateurs havewritten fascinating vo lumes on S ici ly, but for all this the island and itspeop le are the least known of any in E urope.

I n fact , S ici ly only comes into public interest or attention whenbrigands , earthquakes or pecul iarly atrocious crimes are recounted . A ll

the court s of the I talian kingdom havebeen unable to bring to justicethemurder of themarquis banker s lain by theM afia six years ago.

E ven the parl iament has been unable to infl ict appropriate punishment on a gui lty minister of educat ion convi cted of carrying on persistent graft of the most primitively daring nature during h is entiretenureof ministerial responsib i l ity .

W hen convicted , though he had confessed h is gui lt by flying fromthe country, he was t riumphant ly re-elected to the assembly and againre-elected when again expelled . T hough it might seem from the universal monumenting of G aribaldi , that the S i ci lians wpatri ots, they do not

W H O S H A L L IMM O R T A L I ZE T H E T R A G E DY ? 173

kingdom andthis recalcitrancy has been oneof the excruciating problemsof theunited state.

T he M afia has unti l recent ly real ly governed the electorate and thedagger has been a potent persuader in persuading majorities for out lawsthat ought to be in prison or tranqui lized by the electri c chair !

T hough G oethe, after h is tour through the S outhern lands wrote,I taly W ithout S ici ly leaves no image on the soul , S icily is the key toall,

”he pictures M ess ina and Palermo as the s ites aboveall that madede

scription vain, for i t i s impossible to give to words the quality that represents the scenic lovel iness of a perpetual sunset land .

W hile every page of ancient history has something to say of S ici ly,that land O f beauty anddel ight i s least written of by the moderns of allthe territories that served as a stage forthe portentous dramas embalmedinG recian and R oman history , to say nothing of mytho logy. T oall , savesthearchaeo logists , i t i s always a surprise to learn that there are moreremnants of G reek temp les on the is land of S ici ly than in all G reece.

In fact, from S i ci l ian soil may be reconstructed more of the architectural characteri stics of al l the early nations than the rest of E uropecan show .

F or S ici ly has been in it s time the realm of a conqrzm

i i

g segmentof nearly every race since the disruption of the Roman empire.

E V E R Y R A CE H A S L E F T R E L I CS .

E ven the Cl iff Dwel lers have left their rel ics among theT artareancaves of a soi l so r ich that a harvest a month used to be looked upon asnormal . P rehistori c bui lders are represented by cyclopean structures,foundations of walls raised by P hoenicean andCarthaginian conquerers,temples

,theatres and fortresses erected by G reek hands, ming le with

bridges , aqueducts wrought by R oman engineers .

174 W H O S H A L L IMM O R T A L I ZE T H E T R A G E DY ?

E very known race was at one time or another master of the i s land, andevery race has left relics of its tenure.

T o the G reeks the is land was a treasure house for food and supplies ;to the R omans it was a land of loot for grasping pro-consuls, as well as apoint of vantage foramb itious generals who , holding the territory, couldforce R ome to ei ther fight or submit, to enterpris ing rebel l ion.

During fifteen hundred years the i sland was looked upon as theprizeof the s trong-handed . T heM os lem andChristian disputed the landfor centuries and almost on the site of the chasm that now representswhat M essina was , the crusaders from F rance, B ritain and I taly held rendezvous to set sai l against the Paynim .

W hen the G reeks of the mainland saved thewest from the incurs ionsof thePersians at S alamis , a battlewas fought at H imera, in S i ci ly, hard lyless decis ive than the s laughter on theA egean. F ora period theM oslemestablished the dominion of the A frican Cal ifs on the S icilian lands.

T H E N O R M A N CO N Q U E S T .

O ne of the most dazz l ing kingdoms of the midd le period betweenthe R oman and the renaissance was that of the N ormans , founded byremnants of the F rench crusaders . T hen, inturn, the land was the subjcet of S eam ans, A ngevins (F rench), A ragonese, Catalans, Castillians,S avoyards

,A ustrians .

F rom the first settlement of the I onian G reeks at N axos, near thes lope of M ount E tna, until the F rench revolution, S ici ly was the prey ofsuccessive conquerors . I ts authentic as wel l as legendary history readslike an endless vo lume of romance, ensanguined by wholesale slaughterseither by war or earthquakes .

But the land is so lovely , the skies such perpetual panoramas ofbeauty, the air so elem ent, the fol iage so luxuriant , that the dwellers forgot the ever-impending threat of violent death in the rapturous enjoyment of the satisfaction of the senses . W h en the destinies of the G reeian partriawereat stake, i t was in thewaters of S yracuse that the frightfulnaval combat was fought

,which T hucydides describes as theg reatest

sea fight the world has ever known . F or centuries the “S iceliots” as

the S icilians were known in contradistinction to other G reeks, became

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176 W H O S H A L L IMMO R T A L IZE T H E T R A G E DY ?

though its site is older than any other southern ci ty, was themost modcm of the capitals identified wi th successive races .

W ithout the rel ics of antiquity, M ess ina possessed only the charmof i ts del icious c l imate, its gay street l ife and the bewildering v istas seenfrom the successive parterres of vine-clad lovel iness winding S kyward .

T here had been rel ics of G recian, S aracen, N orman and R oman citadels ,amphitheatres andwhat not unti l the unspeakable Bomba let loose hisdemoniac soldiery in 1848 to put down the insurrectionary forces bentupon forming a civi lized system on the i s land .

M essina’ s hundred and fifty thousand peop le were scattered alongthe narrow fringe of land between the foot hi l ls and the curv ing beach ,hence the swift destruction that followed the invasion of the “ thirty-fivefeet of water” that i s described as rising after the few seconds of shockthat tumbled the walls and slaughtered the s leeping v i ctims .

N ot long ago a very perfect system of seismographic instrumentswere set up along the coast to g ive warning to threatened cities ; themechanism is so ingenious that scient ific folk have traveled from farandnear to watch its astonishing accuracy, its almost supernatural sensit iveness to the s l ightest vibration anywhere on the i s land .

But the experimentation confirms the scientist s that the earth isalways sl ightly “atremble

,

” hencethedestruction is wrought beforewarning can be given. But for that matter, as M essina was swaying and disintegrating within the space of a heart throb

,warning would have been

of small avail. T he singleedifice in M essina that fixed the attention ofthe studious for its historic associations and antiquity was the cathedralof L aM atrice, founded by Count R oger, the N orman ruler in 1098 .

A ll of the ancient parts of the edifice authentically of the past werethe portals of the facade indescribably enriched by carving in stone, andsti ll more celebrated twelfth century mosaics, which were counted unequalled in I taly.

F rom farandnear the pious wended to L aM atrice to lay votive offerings on the various altars to propi tiate Providence infavor of thesailor folk.

CH A PT E R X V

N O R T H A M E R I CA N V O L CA N O E S — F A M O U S M O U N T S H A S T A .

N O R T H E R N A R I ZO N A .

— V O L CA N I C G L A S S - CR A T E R S O N T H E

PA CI F I C CO A S T .

AZO N E of mountains extends along the whole western flank ofthe A merican continent

,from the northern to the southern

extremity . T his,from A laska to T erra del F uego

,is associated

with volcanoes,though the vents are onl y locall y active

,and in

the maj ority of cases the craters are either ruinous or have disappeared. Inthe extreme north

,a volcanic belt extends from the

head of Cook’s I nlet on the east through A laskaand over the

A leutian I sles towards the district already described . T he highermountains

,however

,so faras 13 at present known, are not volcanic

—M ount S t. E lias, about feet,certainly is not .

T he same is probably true of its yet more lofty neighbor,M ount L ogan, and the other summits near the frontier of Britishand U nited S tates territory ; the A laska coast also, which forms afringe to this region, seems to be free from volcanoes, and the sameis true of S outh-eastern A laska and its islands,with the exceptionof M ount E dgecumbe, aninsular volcano which is reported to bea basaltic crater about 2855 feet high, and to have been active in1796. E ruptions are said'

to have occurred from M ount Calderand other summits on P rince of W ales I sland at a slightl y earlierdate but these

,as P rofessor I . C. R ussell informs us, are as yet.

very imperfectl y known .

T hemost conspicuous and best-marked belt begins atCook 3I nlet on the east, and extends through the A laskan promontoryto the A leutian I slands . I t i s about a thousand miles long, butgenerally less than forty miles broad. In fact, every volcano init which i s known to have been active in historic times can be

178 N O R T H AM E R ICA N VO LCAN O E S .

either close to the sea on the southern border of the mainland oronislands .

T o this statement as to the geographical distribution one

exception is known ; s ome small cones , also of basalt, occur nearS t. M ich ael on th e coas t of Beh ring S ea, about seventy miles northof the mouth of th eYukon R iver ; but there may be others , forat present not much of A laska has been carefully investigatedbyqualified observers . O nCopper R iver, some two hundred m iles tothe northeast of Cook’

s I nlet,and thus apparently insulated from

the A leutian belt,rises M ount W rangel, a lofty volcano, which was

in eruption in 18 19 andi s s till steam ing, and others of the neighboring mountains may have the same origin .

O nth e western sh ore also of this inlet are two fine volcanicpeaks

,R edoute and I liamna

,reportedto be about 1 and

feet high . T he latter i s generally steam ing,and a few years ago

discharged such a quantity of dus t andl apilli that the forests werekilled over hundreds of square miles on the adj acent lowlands .

V O L CA N O E S O F A L A S K A .

F rom this district to Central A merica no active vents existthough they were once plentiful . Inthe Canadian territory to thesouth and east of U nitedS tates A laska very little is at presentknown of its volcanic history . T here are lava sheets about theF raser R iver of enormous extent

,but Dr. G . M . Dawson did not

discover here any distinct traces of craters, so that very probablythis portion of the American continent may be compared with thenorthern S ide of the A tlantic bas in

,where discharges ancientl y

occurred from A ntrim at least as faras I celand, but now continueonl y in the latter region .

T heColumbia l avas,vast sheets of basalt, have been already

mentioned but here,as in the F raser

'

R iver district,cinder cones

andcraters are wanting,and the eruptions probably date from about

the middle of the T ertiary era. T hey lie to th e east of th eCascadeM ountains

,in which volcanoes have certainl y existed , but wh ether

any retain their craters does not seem to be as yet as certained .

T here i s atradition that M ount B aker, afine peak to the wes t of

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180 N O R T H A M E R I CA N V O L CA N O E S

T h e crater, as illustrated by Professor R ussell, is a doublem e

,and there were two distinct periods of eruption. In the ear

lier a quantity of ash was ejectedand the cinder cone itself wasformed . T hen therewas apause long enough to allow ten feetof diatomaceous earth to accumulate on th e bed of an adj acentlake

,and after that came th e quiet effusion of a large sheet of

lava.E as t of the S ierra N evada, on th e area once occupied by a

great sheet of water now spoken of as L ake L ahontan, are twoancient craters filled with alkaline water. T h e greater

,which

has an area of about 268 acres , only rises some eighty feet abovethe level of the surrounding country , so that it resembles, thoughon a larger scale, such a crater as the Pulverm aar in the E ifel .G eological evidence shows that these were active during theexistence of L ake L ahontan, andth at before they ceased it hadalready begunto dry up .

P O U R I N G O U T L A V A S T R E A M S .

IntheM ono valley, also eas tof the S ierra N evada, but farthersouth

,and near to the lake of the same name, are a number of

craters, some not much elevated above the surrounding country

,

but others ris ing to over 2000 feet, w ith l ava s treams and fumaroles . T hematerials apparently cons ist of basalts and varietiesof andesite ; but the M ono craters, as the l ine of higher cones iscalled

,have ej ected rhyolite and even obsidian . P rofessor R us~

sell remarks that those cones (someof which have lost their craters), though forming an isolated group, are really a portion of a

much more extended S eries of recent eruptions, which follow thegeneral course of the great belt of branching faults by which theeastern face of the S ierra N evada has been determined .

T he fact that,as a rule

,the central cones are the less per

fectly preserved andare th e older, shows that“ the volcanic energy

early in the history of the range evidently found an avenue ofescape where !they!now stand, and when the conduits of thes ecraters becam e Clogged newer craters were formed, both to th e

north andsouth , along thesamelineor belt of fracture.”

N O R T H A M E R I CA N V O L CA N O E S 181

T othe west of th eW ahsatch M ountains , in the inlandbasinof U tah , and on Ithe area once occupied by the great sheet ofwater des ignated L ake Bonneville, are the I ce S pring Craters, agroup of low craters

,three of which are very well defined

,though

they are breached by streams of basaltic lava,which covers an

area of over twelve square miles . O ther craters occur in the distriet

,some being older and some newer than L ake Bonneville,

while others were active during its existence.

I nnorthern A rizona the S an F rancisco M ountains are volcanic. T he higher summ its , which rise to a mean elevation of

feet above the seaand about 5700 above the general levelofthe surrounding table-land

,cons ists l argely of trachy tic l avas and

have lost their craters but around them are numerous smallcraters of basaltic s coria, which often are well preserved and areassocia.edwith flows of th e same rock . S ome of these have beenbreached by the lava

,wh ich has welled up in their interior and

has es caped exactly as was des cribed by S crope in h is book on

T he V olcanoes of Central F rance . I n one,however

,a fake f

sheltered .

F A R -F A M E D YE L L O W S T O N E P A R K .

Justeast of the crest of the R ockyMdiiutains, and in thenorthwes t corner of th e S tate of W yom ing, is th e far-famed volcanicdistrict of theYellows tone P ark and its neighborhood . Cratersapparently are not common in this region , but the great flows ofobs idian attracted much attention from geologists . T his volcanicglass i s associated with pum ice, th erocks generally being trachytes,usually rich in s ilica . T he vents are now extinct, unless a mudvolcano be regarded as an exception ; but the hot springs andgeysers to which the P ark owes its world-wide fame S how th at ahigh temperature still prevails, probably at no great depth belowthe surface .

T he vast flows of basalt in the valleys drain ing to the S nakeR iver in I daho

,to wh ich reference has already been made, are on

182 NO R T H A M E R I CA N V O LCA N O E S .

very large cones and flows of basalt,wh ile to the south of

Pucho th e bold summits of th e S panish Peaks which riserespectively to heights of and feet above the sea

,are

ancient volcanoes but in all these th e craters seem to have beendes troyed . T h ematerials are described as trachy tes , some variei ies approaching rhyol ite .

F arther south, however, in the S tate of N ew M exico,are

several extinct volcanoes , some of which retain their craters ingood preservation . T hem aterials

,so faras described are basalt.

M ount T aylor feet)also i s th e centreof avolcanicdistrict.I ts crater has perished, but these remain on some of the smallerneighboring cones . T h e rock apparently is basalt.

T he long peninsula of L ower California may be regarded asa prolongation of the ch ain of the S ierra N evada . I t also con-ntains many extinct volcanoes

,wh ich

,however

,are at presentbut

imperfectly known . T owards the north,according to Professor

R ussell,M ount S anta Catalina rises to a height of some 10

,cuo

feet,and labout th e m iddle i s a group of volcanic peaks knownas

the T res V irg ines, th e highest of which is said to be 7250 feet.In this group an eruption occurred in 1857, and s ince thensteam has been ej ected, sometimes in great quantity .

T H R E E M O U N T A I N CH A I N S .

T hos e described above, as P rofessor R ussell remarks, areonly some of th e most s triking instances among the hundreds oflava-dows and craters within th e U nited S tates ; but it will benoticed that the great m ajority are associated with the second oneof the three mountain chains wh ich form th ewestern flank of theN orth A merican continent, th e huge eastern mass of the R ockyM ountains being almost entirel y , and the smaller western one ofthe Coast R ange being wholl y , free from volcanoes of recent date.T he S ierra M adre in M exico, which may be regarded as a prolongationof th e R ocky M ountains , appears to exh ibit no s igns ofvolcanic action.

T hus a very cons iderable space separates the volcanoes of thepartof M exico which lies south of the tropicof Cancer

,a, region

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184 NO R T H AM E R I CA N VO LCAN O E S .

Yet farther to the east come Cofre de P erote and O rizaba,which also lie on a north and south l ine ; the former, which iscomposed of hornblende andes ite, has lost its crater and is onl y13,552 feet high but its companion i s th e highes t volcanic sum .

mit on the northern continent . T he exact m easurement isuncertain

,but it cannot be much

,i f at all

,less than feet.

O n th e summ it are three craters in good preservation,andthe

flanks of the mountain are studded with small cones . I ts lasteruption i s said to have occurred in th e eigh teenth century.

F inally,onth e eastern coas t i s T uxtla

,reported to be a little

less than 5000 feet h igh,wh ich is active from time to time . A

terrible eruption occurred,after a pause of nearly one hundred

and twenty years , in M arch, 1793. A series of violent explosionscons iderably reduced th e height of th e mountain and scatteredashes over a l arge area . T h e fine dust was borne by the windabout 150 m iles to th e northwes t

,and the sam e distance to the

southwest. T h is fact suggests th at , as happened to a less extentin an eruption of Cotopaxi, part of th e dust was shot up into aregion where an upper s tratum of air was moving in a diff erentdirection from the lower one.

E X P L O S I O N A F T E R L O N G R E P O S E .

S till in M exico,but cons iderabl y to th e south of toe belt

described above,and onth e shore of th e P acific

,i s Chacahua

,an

extinct crater,while to th e east of it is P ochutla

,a volcano which

,

after a very long period of repose,exploded in 1870 .

F rom G uatemala to Costa R ica is a zone marked by greatvolcanic activity

,which follows the line of the P acific coast. S ome

of the cones on this rise to elevations considerably abovefeet, but the maj ority do not exceed 8000 . I nG uatemala

,accord

ing to a list g iven by Professor R ussell, there are two activevolcanoes

,four quiescent

,and fifteen extinct. A mong the last

named is T ajamulco, which lay s claim ,though probably without

warrant,to analtitude of feet .

InSanS alvador five are active, three quiescent, and the samenumber extinct. H onduras, which lies chiefly to the eas t of

N O R T H A M E R ICAN vorcmrom 185

the mountain axis, is without an active volcano, but has two

quies cent and threeextinct . N icaragua contains four active,eigh t

quiescent,five extinct

,while in Costa R ica one only can be called

active,and its last eruption was as long agoas 1726, while twoare

quiescent and s ix extinct . L astl y , at th e northern part of theI sthmus of P anama are three mountains of volcanic origin

,two

of them over feet h igh,but it i s doubtful whether any one

retains a remnant of a crater .

T hree of th e volcanoes in th e above-nam ed l ist are especiallyinteresting

,because

,like M onte N uovo

,th ehistory of their actual

birth is recorded . T woof these are in S anS alvador, the third inN icaragua . O f th e form er, I z al co, now ris ing about 3000 feetabove th e surrounding country and 5000 feet above the sea-level

,

began to be formed in th e year 1770 . I t covers what previousl ywas a fine cattle farm .

“ T h e occupants on this estate werealarmed by subterranean noises and shocks of earthquakes aboutthe end of 1769, which continued to increase in loudness andstrength until the twenty-third of th eF ebruary following,when th eearth opened about hal f a mile from th e dwellings on the estate

,

sending out l ava, accom panied by fire andsmoke.

”

H O W T H E CO N E W A S B U I L T U P .

T h e eruption thus begun went on continuously, lava sometimes being ej ected, but at others onl y ashes and volcanic bombs ,and thus th e cone has been bui lt up to its present height . N o

lava has been discharged for many years , but ashes and dust,mingled w ith steam ,

are constantly ejected . T here are threecraters

,the central one being the largest and most active. A cid

vapors also are emitted from fumaroles . L ake I lopango, whichposs ibly occupies an ancient crater, also in S an S alvador, W it

nessedth e beginning of avolcano as l ately as the year 1880 .

A violent earthquake in 1879 was accompanied by a ris ing ofsteam from the lake, and was followed by a s teady fall in the level

l 86 N O R T H A ME R ICA N V O CL AN O E S .

the centre,from wh ich rose a column of vapor. T he eruption

lasted for more th an a month , sulphurous vapors were emittedcopiousl y, th e fish in th e l ake were killed

,and a cone was ulti

mately formed about 160 feet above the water, but ris ing from a

depth of some600 feet.A new volcano broke out on A pril 1 1 , 1850, inN icaragua, in

a dis trict called th e P l ain of L eon . T h is i s studded wi th cones,

of which one at least is active. T h e commencement of th e eruption was not carefull y observed, but th e outbreak occurrednearthe base of an extinct crater called L as P ilas . I t beg an w ith acopious disch arge of l ava.

T his ceased on th e fourteenth of th e month,and was suc

ceededby a different ph aseof action, namely , a series of paroxysm slasting about three m inutes

,with intervals of about the same

length . By these, steam ,ashes

,andred-hot bombs were shot up

to a height of several hundred feet,accompanied

,i t is said

,by

outbursts of flame . T hus in th e course of a week a cone wasbuilt up to a heigh t of from a h undred andfifty to two hundredfeet

,after wh i ch th e action becam e much m ore interm ittent.

T H R E E S O U T H A M E R I CA N P E A K S .

A mong th e older summits of Central A merica it m ay suflice

tomention three,all of wh ich are lofty mounta i ns . V olcan de

A gua, feet,at the time of the S panish invas ion was a

crater-lake. I n th e year 154 1 , a fter an earthquake, the wall ofthe crater gave way on th e northeas tern side and the waterescaped

,doing great damage as it rushed down th e s lope of the

mountain . F uego,to th e east

,with its group of three volcan ic

cones,the highes t of which attains to feet

,was often active

in th e sixteenth and seventeenth centuries , and probably for somelong time previousl y ; but s ince then eruptions have been lessfrequent

,th ough one occurred as late as 1860

,and steam s till

issues from th e crater.But the most noted of all is Coseguina, for it was the s cene

of a frightful eruption in th e year 1835. S o faras i s known,t h is

,

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188 NO R T H A M E R I CA N V O L CA N O E S .

form three principal groups— those of Colombia and E cuador inthe north

,t hose of Bolivia in the centre

,and those of Chili in the

south . A bout s ixty craters are still active ; thos e wh ich are

extinct and more or less ruined may be counted by hundreds .

T he firs t group,in the more northern part

,consists of three prin

cipal ranges , of wh ich th e eastern one branches out at last intothe great mountains wh ich runs roughly parallel with the borderof the Caribbean S ea.

T he western range is less elevated than the others , at anyrate in its more northern part the central

,on which the volcanoes

are ch iefly s ituated,supports many lofty peaks . O f these M esa

de H erveo,

feet,retain s its ancient crater ; R uiz ,

feet ; T olima , feet ; and H uila, all show some signsof life . An eruption occurred at Purace

,feet

,in 1849 ,

when the torrents of mud caused by the rapid melting of the snowcaused m uch devastation . E xtinct volcanoes are also frequent .In the eastern ch ain no vents are m entioned as active.

F I E R Y S U M M I T S O F E CU A D O R .

Passing into E cuador, the volcanic summ its , according to Mr.

W hym per, are grouped along two roughly parallel lines . O nthewestern

,Cotocach i

,P ichincha

,Coraz on

,I lliniza

, Carihuairazo,

and Chimboraz o are the most important on th eeastern,Cayambe

,

A ntisana, S incholagua, Cotopaxi, A ltar, and S angai . O f thesethe maj ority have lost their craters

,including Chimborazo . A ltar

retains one,so does P ich incha

,which apparently is hardly extinct

,

while S angai and Cotopaxi , which has been already described,are

still active .

I t may suffice to say that the specimens brought back by M r.

W hymper were almos t without exception varieties of andesite,

several of them containing hypers th ene . A ntisana,however

,

also furnished a pitch stone. T he volcanic cones,accord ing to

R eiss and W olf, continue for some distance to the south of thosewhich have been m entioned .

In the Peruvian and Bolivian A ndes we find the secondlinear group of craters . T he same arrangem ent in parallel lines

N O R T H A M E R ICAN V O LCA N O E S . 189

tocontinue,andthe h ighest summit,H auscan

,is said to overtop

Chimborazo by rather more than 1300 feet. V olcanic cones aremost frequent in the southern part of the western range

,where

they set in again some 1200 miles from thoseof E cuador. F ew ,

however, are mentioned as active in historic times ; among themU binas, O mate, Candarave feet), are enumerated byR eclus . But among the extinct volcanoes some also rise to greatheights

,such as S ara-S ara, A chatayhua, Coro Puna, A mpato,

M isti,and Chachani

,all of which exceed feet, the last

reaching feet and M isti feet.T his volcanic group continues into Bol ivia

,and there are

some active craters , especially near L ake T iticaca. P resumablythe higher peaks of this country

,five of which are enum erated as

over feet,and the highest

,I llimani

,reaching feet

,

are volcanic,and the last is said to smoke constantly. A ltogether

,

sixteen craters are asserted to be active in this second group of

A ndres volcanoes, of which, at present, our knowledge i s rath erimperfect.

L O N G CE A S E D T O B E A CT I V E .

Pass ing on to the third group,the volcanoes of Chili, we find

th ese numerous, though, forth emost part, they have long ceasedto be active. Inth e northern part

,h owever

,two at least

, L lullai

laco feet)and Dona I nez are still at work. Inthe middleare the highes t summ its— A conagua, feet ; Cerro del

M ercedario,

feet ; T upungato, feet ; S an José ,feet ; and M aipo, feet . O f these, A conagua has

entirely lost its crater, and T upungato retains duedistinctive traceof it

,but one or two vents are still active ; one about I feet

high,lying some twenty miles to the southwest of T upungato.

Inthis part also,according to M r. F itz G erald, the A ndes consist

of two ranges,of which the western is the watershed ; the other

supports the highest peaks . T here is also a third and eastern

190 N O R T H AM E R ICA N V O LCA NO L B

gato being the h ornblende-bearing variety of that rock, though a

rhyolite or dacite was obtained on the flank of the latter mountain.

T h e volcanic line does not completel y come to an end with Chili,

for Corcovado (7510 feet)in the P atagonian A ndes is avolcano,but though there m ay be some extinct cones yet farther south.the active vents are not continued to Cape H orn.

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192 H O M E O F A M E R ICA N VO LCA N O E .

erupted only a few hundred years ago but no activevent orcrate!is tobe found over th e whole of this wide reg ion. A few specialdistricts only can here be selected by way of illustration of its

special features in connection with its volcan ic history.

T his tract, wh ich i s drained by th e Colorado river and itstributaries

,i s bounded on the north by the W ahsatch range, and

extends eas tward to th e base of the S ierra N evada. R ound itsmargi n extens ive volcanic tracts are to be found, with numerouspeaks andtruncated cones— th e ancient craters of eruption— of

which M ount S anF rancisco i s the culminating em inence.

S outh of the W ahsatch, and occupy ing the high plateaux ofU tah, enormous masses of volcan ic products have been spreadover an area of 9000 square miles

,attaining a thicknes s of

between 3000 and 4000 feet . T he earl ier of these great lavafloods appear to have been trachy tic, but the later basaltic ; andin the opinion of Captain Dutton, who has des cribed them,

theyrange in point of time from the M iddle T ertiary (M iocene)dcwnto comparatively recent times .

H I G H L E V E L S I N U T A H .

T o the south of the high plateaux of U tah are many 11111101

volcanic mountains,now extinct and as we descend towards the

G rand Canon of Colorado we find numerous cinder cones scatteredabout at intervals near the cliffs . E xtens ive lava fields , surmounted by cinder cones

,occupy the plateau on the western s ide

of the G rand Canon ; and, according to Dutton, the great sheetsof basaltlc l ava

,of very recent age, which occupy many hundred

square m iles of desert, have had their sources in these cones oferuption .

Crossing to the east of the G rand Canon,we find other lava

floods poured over th e country at intervals, surmounted by S an

F rancisco —a vol canic mountain of th e first magnitude— wh ichreaches an elevation . acccrding to W heeler, of feet abovethe ocean . I t has long been extinct. and its summit and flanksare coveredwith snow fields and glaciers . O ther parts of A riz onaare overspreadby sheets of basaltic lava, through which old

I H O M E O F A M E R I CA N V O L CA N O E S 193

“necks ” of eruption, formed of more solid lava than th e sheets,

ri se occas ionally above the surface,and are prominent features in

the landscape.

F urther to the eastward in N ew M exico,and near th e margin

of the volcanic region,i s another volcanic mountain little less

lofty than S anF rancisco, called M ount T aylor,wh ich

,according

toDutton,rises to an elevation of feet above th e ocean

,

and 8200 feet above th e general level of th e surrounding plateauof l ava . T his m ountain form s th e culm inating point of a w idevolcanic tract

,over which are distributed numberless vents of

eruption . S cores of such vents — generall y cinder cones— are

vis ible inevery part of th e plateau, and always in a more or lessdilapidated condition . M ount T aylor i s a volcano

,with a central

pipe term inating in a large crater, th ewall of which was brokendown on the east s ide in th e l ater stage of its history .

V O L CA N I C R A N G E S .

P roceeding westward into California, we are ag ain confrontedwith volcanic phenomena on a stupendous s cale. T h e coast rangeof mountains, which branches off from th e S ierra N evada atM ount P inos, on th e south, i s term inated near the northern extrem ity of th e S tate by a very lofty mountain of volcanic origin,called M ount S hasta, which attains an elevationof feet .T his mountain was first ascended by Clarence K ing in 1870, andalthough form ing, as it were, a portion of the P acific Coas t R ange,it really rises from the pl ain in soli tary g randeur , its summitcovered by snow,

and originating several fine glaciers .

T h e summ it of M ount S hasta is a nearly perfect cone, butfrom its northwest s ide there juts out a larg e crater-cone just below the snow l ine, between which andthe main mass of the m ountain their exists a deep depression filled with glacier ice. T his

crater-cone has been named M ount S hastina, and roundice winds itself

,sometimes

194 H O M E O F A M E R I CA N V O L CA N O E S

about 4000 feet. A nother very lofty volcanicmountain is MountR ainier

,in the W ashington territory, cons isting of three peaks

of which the eastern possesses a crater very perfect throughoutits entire circumference. T his mountain appears to be formedmainly of trachytic m atter. P roceeding further north into Britishterritory

, several volcanic mountains near the Pacificcoast are saidto exhibit evidence of activity .

O f these may be mentioned M ount E dgecombe, M ount F airweather

,which rises to a height of feet ; andM ount S t.

E lias, j us t within the divis ional l ine between B ri tish and R ussianterritory

,and reaching an altitude of feet. T his

,the loftiest

of all of the volcanoes of the N orth A merican continen t,except

those of M exico,may be considered as the connecting link in the

volcanic chain between the continent and the A leutian I slands .

L A K E S A N D T H E I R O R I G I N .

R eturning to U tah we are brough t into contact with phe

nomena of special interest, owing to the inter-relations of volcanicandlacrustine conditions which once prevailed over largetracts of that territory . T h e present G reat S alt L ake, and the

smaller neighboring lakes,those called U tah and S evier, are but

remnants of an originall y far greater expanse of inland water,the

boundaries of which have been traced out by M r. C. K . G ilbert,

and des cribed under the name of L ake Bonneville .

T hewaters of this lake appear to have reached their highestlevel at th e maximum cold of th e P ost P liocene period

,when the

glaciers descended to its marg in, and large streams of glacierwater were poured into it . E ruptions of basaltic lava from suc

cessive craters appear to have gone on before,during

,andafter the

lacustrine epoch ; andthe drying up of the waters over the greaterextent of their original area

,now converted into the S evier Desert,

andtheir concentration into their present comparatively narrowbas ins , appears to have proceeded pari passu with the gradualextinction of the volcanic outburs ts .

T wo success ive epochs of eruption of basalt appears to havebeen clearly established— eu earlier one of the Provo A ge,

”

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196 H O M E or A M E R I CAN VoL CA N O Ea

gists to the conclusion th at the lavas were inmany cases extrudedfrom fissures in th e earth’

s crus t rather than from ordinary craters .

T his view i s also urged by S ir A . G eikie,who vis ited the U tah

region of th e S nake R iver in 1880,and has vividly des cribed

th e impress ion produced by the s ight of these vas t fields ofbasaltic lava .

H e says, W e found that the older trachy tic lavas of the hillshad beendeepl y trenched by th e l ateral valley s and that all thesevalleys had a floor of black basalt that had been poured outas the lastof th e molten m atei i al from th enow extinct volcanoes . T here wereno vis ible cones or vents from which these floods of basalt could haveproceeded . W erode forhours by the marg in

'

of a vast plain of basaltstretching southward and westward as faras th e eye could reach .

I realized th e truth of an assertion made first by R ichthofen,that

our modern volcanoes,such as V esuvius and JE tna, present us with

by no means th e grandes t typeof volcanic action, but rather belongto atime of failing activity . T h ere havebeen periods of tremendousvol canic energy

,when insteadof escaping from a local vent

,l ike

aV esuvian cone , th e l ava h as found its way to the surface byinnum erable fissures opened for it in th e sol id crus t of th e globeover thousands of squaremiles .

”

H I S T O R Y O F T H E E R U P T I O N S .

T he general succes s ion of volcanic events throughout th eregion of W estern A merica appears to have been somewhat asfollows

T h e earliest volcanic eruptions occurred in th e laterE ocene epoch and were continued into th e succeeding M iocenestage . T hese cons isted of rocks moderately rich in s ilica

,and are

grouped under the heads of propylite and andes ite . T o thesesucceeded during the P liocene epoch still more highl y s ilicatedrocks of trach y tic type

,cons isting of sanidine and oligoclase

trachy tes .

T hen came eruptions of rhyol ite during the later P lioceneand P leis tocene epoch ; and lastly , after a period of cessation

,

during which the rocks just described were greatl y eroded, came

H O M E O F A M E R ICA N V O LCA N O E S . 197

the great eruptions of basaltic lava,deluging the plains

,winding

round th e cones or plateaux of the older lavas,descending into the

ri ver valley s and flooding th e l ake beds,issuing from both vents

and fissures , and continuing interm ittently down almost into th epresent day— certainly into the period of man’

s appearance onth e scene.

T hus th e volcanic history of W estern A merica correspondsremarkably to that of th e E uropean reg ions with which we havepreviousl y dealt, both as regards th e success ion of th e variouslavas and the epochs of their eruption .

T h e gey sers and hot springs of the Yellowstone P ark,like

those in I celand and N ew Zealand, are special manifestations ofvolcanic action

,generally in its secondary or moribund stage .

T he gey sers of th e Yellowstone occur on a grand s cale theeruptions are frequent, andth e water i s projected into th e air to aheigh t of over 200 feet . M os t of these are interm ittent

,l ike the

remarkable one known as O ld F aith ful , the Cas tle G eyser, andth e G iantess G eyser described by Dr. H ayden, wh ich ej ects the

water to a height of 250 feet.

T I N T S O F R E D A N D YE L L O W .

T he gey ser waters hold large quantities of s ilica and sulphurin solution , owing to th eir high temperature under great pressureand these m inerals are precip itated upon the cool ing of the watersin th e air, and form circular basins , often gorgeously t inted withred and yellow colors

Inth e great P acific O cean, the I sl ands maybe referred to twoclasses , distinguished by their elevation into high and low . T he

latter class appear tobe entirel y of modern formation ,th eproduct ofthat accumulation of coral reefs wh ich F linders and others h ave

198 H O ME O F AME R I CAN V O L CAN O E S

towards their north, wh ich is parallel to that of th e Philippinegroup, whereas the islands that lie detached in the middle of thebas in

,of which these two groups are the boundaries, seem forthe

m ost part to be extinguished .

M r. E llis , amiss ionary, has given ina narrative of a T ourT hrough the H awaii I slands a most detailedaccount of th e activevolcano of H awaii .

T he plain over which their way to the mountain lay was avast waste of ancient lava

,which he thus describes T h e tract

of l ava resem bled in appearance an inland sea, bounded by distantmountains . O nce it had certainly been in a fluid state, butappeared as i f it had become suddenly petrified, or turned into aglassy stone

,while its agitated billows were rolling to andfro.

Not onl y were the large swells andhollows distinctl y marked, butin many places the surface of these billows was covered by asmaller ripple

,like that observed on the surface of the seaat the

springing up of a breeze,or the pass ing currents of air, which pro

duce what the sailors call a cats-paw.

E D G E O F A S T E E P P R E CI P I CE .

A bout 2 P . M . the crater of K il auea suddenly burstupon ourview. W e expected to have seen a mountain with a broad baseandrough, indented s ides

,composed of loose slags

,or hardened

streams of l ava,and whose summit would have presented a

rugged wall of scoria,forming th e rim of a mighty cauldron .

But instead of th is,we found ourselves on the edge of a s teep

precipice, with a vast plain before us fifteen or sixteen miles incircumference, and sunk from two hundred to four hundred feetbelow its original level . T he surface of this plain was uneven

,

andstrewed over with huge s tones and volcanic rock, and in thecenter of it was the great crater

,at the distance of a mile and a

half from the place where we were standing. W e walked on tothe north endof th e ridge

,where

,the precipice being less ‘

steep, a

descent to theplain below seemed practicable. W ith all our care,

wedidnot reach the bottom without several falls and slight bruises.“A fter walking some distance over the sunken plain

,which

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200 H O M E O F A M E R I CA N V O L CA N O E S

face of th e plain on w h ich we were s tanding— th e long banks of

sulphur on the opposite s ide of the abyss— th e vigorous action ofthe numerous small craters on its borders— th e dense columns ofvapor and smoke that rose at the N . and S . end of the plaintogether with th e ridge of s teep rocks by w h ich it was surrounded,ris ing probabl y in some pl aces three or four hundred feet in a perpendicularheight, presented an immense volcan ic panoram a, th eeff ect of which was greatly augmented by th e constant roaring ofthe vast furnaces below .

T he natives still persist in believing, th at the conical cratersof the mountains areth ehouses of their gods ,wherethey frequentl yamuse themselves by play ing at K ouane(a g ame like draughts);that th e roaring of the furnaces and th e crackling of th e flamesare the m usic of their dance

,and th at th eredflam ing surge is the

surf in which they play, sportively swimm ing on th erolling wave .

S ome of th eir legends may remind us of those that prevailedamong the G reeks .

CU R I O U S O L D L E G E N D .

T hus oneof their kings,who had offended Pele

, the principal goddess of th e volcano

,is pursued by h er to th e shore

,where

leaping into a canoe he paddles out to sea. Pélé,perceiving h is

escape,hurls a fter him huge stones and fragments of rock

,wh ich

fall th ickl y around,but do not strike th e canoe . A number of

rocks in the seaare shown by th e natives,which like th e Cy clo

pean I slands at th e foot of M ount E tna, are s aid to h ave beenthose thrown by Pélé t o s ink th e boat .

“T his legend i s very characteristic of th e m anners and feelings of s avag e li fe. T heking i s represented as taking l ittlepainsto secure the es cape of anyone but him sel f

,for h is mother

,wife

andchildren are all abandoned w ithout compunction h is conductto th e friend who accompanies him is th e onl y traitwhich redeem s

h is character from the charge of utter selfis hness,nor among th e

natives who tell th e story,is their praise of the adroitness with

which he eff ected h is escape, atall less commended on accountofth is desertion of h is nearest relations .

”

H O M E 0 5? A M E R I CA N VO LCA N O E S 201

T h e globe i s g irdled by a chain of volcanic m ountains ina.state of greater or less activity ,

which may,perhaps

,be cons idered

a girdle of safety for the whole world,th rough which th emas ses

of molten matter in a state of h igh pres sure beneath th e crus tfind a way of es cape ; and thus th e structure of the g lobe i s preserved from even greater convuls ions th an those which from timeto time take place at various points on its surface.

T his g irdle i s partl y terrestrial , partl y submarine andcomm encing at M ount E rebus , near th e A ntarctic P ole

,ranging

through S outh S hetland I sle,Cape H orn

,the A ndes of S outh

A merica,the I sth mus of P anama

,then through Central A merica

and M exico,and the R ocky M ountains to K am ts ch atka

,the A leu

tian I slands,th e Kuriles

,th e j apanese, th e Philippines

,N ew

G uinea, and N ew Zealand,reaches the Antartic Circle by the

Balleny I slands . T his g irdle sends off branches at several points .

D O R M A N T V O L CA N I C E V E N T S .

T he linear arrangement of active or dormant volcani c ventshas been pointedout by H umboldt, V onBuch , Daubeny and otherwriters . T h e great range of burning mountains of th eA ndes ofChili, Peru, Bolivia, and M exico

,that of th e A leutian I slands of

K amtsch atka and the K urile I slands , extending southwards intothe Philippines , and th e branching range of the S unda I slandsare well known examples . T hat of th eW es t I ndian I s lands , ranging from G renada through S t. V incent, S t. L ucia, M artinique,Dominica, G audeloupe,M ontserrat, N evis, and S t. E ustace, i s alsoa remarkable example of the l inear arragem entof volcani c m ountains . O ntracing these ranges on a map of th eworld it will beobserved that they are either strings of is lands, or lie in proxim ityto the ocean ; and hence the V iew was naturally entertained by

m H O ME O F A ME R I CAN V O L CA NO E S .

remarkable exceptions of M ounts Keniaand K ilimanjaro in Cmtral A frica

,anda few others . I t is also very s ignificant in this

connection that many of the volcanoes now extinct,or at least

dormant,both in E urope and A s ia, appear to have been in prox

im ity to sheets of water during the period of activity .

T hus th e old volcanoes of the H auran, eas t of the Jordan,appear to have been active at the period when the present Jordanvalley was filled with water to such an extent as to constitute alake two hundred miles in length, but which has now shrunk backtowithin the present limits of the Dead S ea. A gain

,at the

period when the extinct volcanoes of Central F rance were inactive operation

,anextensive lake overspreadthe tract l y ing to

theeast of thegranitic plateau on which the craters and domesare planted, now constituting the rich and fertile plain of Clerm ont.

W A T E R A N D E X P L O S I O N S .

S uch ins tances are too s ignificant to allow us to doubt thatwater in some form is very generally connected with volcanicoperations but it does not follow that it was necessaryto the original formation of volcanic vents

,whether linearor

sporadic. I f this were so, the extinct volcanoes of the BritishI sles would s till be active

,as they are close to the sea-margin

,

and no volcano wouldnow be active which is not near to somelarge sheet of water.

ButJorullo,one of th e greatactive volcanoes of M exico

,lies

noless than 120 m iles from the ocean, and Cotopaxi, in E cuador,i s nearly equally distant. K ilimanj aro feet high

,and K enia

,

inthe equatorial regions of Central A frica, are about 150 milesfrom the V ictoriaN y anza

,anda still greater distance from the

ocean; andM ount Demavend, inP ers ia, which rises to an elevationof feet nearthe southern sh ore of the Caspian S ea, a.volcanic m ountain of th e first magnitude, is now extinct or

S uch facts as theseall tendto sh ow thatalth ough watermaybe an accessory of volcanic eruptions, it is not in all casesessential andweareobliged, therefore, tohaverecourseto some

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204 H O M E O F A M E R ICA N"

V O L CA N O E S .

snow,andsending forth from its crater several columns of smoke

then G uam ani andCayambe feet), h uge truncated conesapparentl y ext inct these constitute th e eastern chain of volcanicheights .

T he western chain contains even loftier m ountains . H erewe find th eg igantic Ch imborazo, anextinct volcano whose summ iti s wh ite with snow ; Carihuairazo and I lliniza

,a lofty pointed

peak like th eM atterhorn Corazon, a snow-claddome, reach ing aheight of feet A tacazo and P ichincha

,th e latter an

extinct volcano reach ing an elevation of feet such is th ewestern ch ain, remarkable for its straigh tness

,th evolcanic cones

being planted in oneg rand process ion from south to north . T hisrectilinear arrangement of the western chain, onl y a l ittle les sconspicuous in the eastern, i s very suggestive of a l ine of fracturein th e crust beneath .

A ndwhen we contemplate the prodigious quantity of matterincluded within th e lim its of these colossal domes and their environm ents

,all of which has been extruded from th e internal reser

voirs,we gain some idea of th e manner in which the contracting

crust disposes of th ematter it c an no longer contain .

Q U I T O A N D P E R U .

Between th evolcanoes of Quito and those of Peru there is anintervening spaceof fourteen degrees of latitude. T his is occupiedby the A ndes

,regarding th e structure of wh ich we have not

much information except that at this part of its course it is notvolcanic . But from A requipa in P eru

,an active volcano

,we find a

new series of volcanic mountains continued south wards th roughT acora feet), then furth er south the more or less activevents of S ajama feet), Coquina,T utupaca,Calam a, A tacama,T oconado

,and others

,form ing an almost continuous range with

that part of the desert of A tacama pertaining to Chili .T hrough th is country we findth e volcanic range appearing

at intervals andstill m ore to the southward s it i s doubtless con«

nectedwith th e volcanoes of Patagonia, north of th e

H O M E O F A M E R I CA N 205

that th is great range of volcanic mountains,lying nearly north

andsouth, corresponds to a line of fracture lying somewhat to theeast of th e range.

A s imilar statement inall probability applies to th e s ystems

of volcanic mountains of the A leutian I sles,K amts chatka

,the

Kuriles, the Philippines, and S unda I sles . N or can it be reason

abl y doubted th at the W estern A merican coast l ine has to a greatextent been determined

,or marked out

,by such lines of displacen

ment ; for, as Darwin has shown, the wholewestern coast of S outhA merica

,foradistance of between 2000 and 3000 miles south of

th e E quator, has undergone an upward movement in very recenttimes— that i s , w ithin th e period of living marine shellS w duringwhich period the volcanoes have been in activity .

G R O U P S O F V O L CA N O E S

T his chain may also be cited in evidence of volcanic actionalong fis sure lines . I t connects the volcanoes of K amtsch atkawith those of Japan, and the l inear arrangement is apparent. In

the former peninsula E rm an counted no fewer than thirteen activevolcanic mountains ri s i ng to heights of to feet abovethe sea. In th e chain of the Kuriles P rofessor John M ilnecounted fifty

-two well-defined volcanoes , of which nine, perhapsmore

,are certainly active.

T hey are not so high as those of K amtschatka but,on the

other hand,they rise from very deep oceanic waters and have

been probably built up from th e sea bottom by successive cruptions of tufi

”

,lava

,and ash . A ccording to the view of Professor

M ilne,the volcanoes of th e K urile chain are fast becom ing

Bes ides the volcanic vents arranged in l ines, of wh ich we havetreated above, there are a large number, both active and extinct,

m H O ME or A ME R I CA N V O L CA N O E S .

be arranged around V esuvius as a centre,really resolves itself

into a line of active and extinct vents of eruption, ranging acrossI tal y from th e T y rrhen ian S ea to the A driatic, through I schia,P rocida, M onte N uovo and the Ph legraean F ields, V esuvius andM ount V ulture.

A gain, the extinct volcanoes of Central F rance, wh ich appearto form an isolated group, indicate, when viewed in detail, a lineararrangement ranging from north to south . A nother region overwhich extinct craters are distributed l ies along the banks of theR hine

,above Bonn and the M oselle ; a fourth in H ungary ; a fifth

inA sia M inor and N orthern Palestine ; and a s ixth in CentralA s ia around L ake Balkash . T hese are all continental, and thelinear distribution is not apparent.

By far the most extens ive regions with sporadically distributedvolcanicvents , both active andextinct, are those which areoverspread by the waters of the ocean, where the vents emerge inthe form of islands . T hese are to be found in all the great oceans,theA tlantic, thePacific, and the I ndian but are especially numereous overthe central Pacific region.

V O L CA N I C CO R A L R E E F S Q

A s K otzebue and subsequentl y Darwin have pointed out,all

the islands of the Pacific are either coral-reefs orof volcanic origin ;andmany of these rise from great depths ; that is to say, fromdepths of 1000 to 2000 fathoms . I t is unnecessary here to attemptto enumerate all these islands which rise in sol itary grandeurfrom the surface of the ocean

,and are the scenes of volcanic opera

tions ; a few may , h owever, be enumerated.

Inthe A tlantic,I celand first claims notice, owing to the mag

m tudeandnumber of its active vents and the variety of the accom o

pany ing phenomena,especiall y the geysers . A s L yell has

observed, with the exception of E tna andV esuvius, themost complete chronological records of a series of eruptions in existenceare those of I celand

,which come down from the ninth century of

ourera, andwhich goto show th at s ince thetwelfth centurytherehas neverbeenanintervalof morethanforty yearswithouteither

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208 H O M E A ME R I CA N V O L CA N O E S .

T eyde)in the Canaries , which attains to an elevation of

feet, as determined by Professor P iazz i S myth .

T his g reat volcanic cone, ris ing from th e ocean,its summit

shrouded in snow,and often protruding above the clouds

,must be

an object of uncommon beauty and interest when seen from thedeck of a ship . T h e central cone

,formed of trachyte

,pum ice

,

obs idian and ashes , rises out of a vas t cauldronof older balsalticrocks with precipitous inner walls- much as th e cone of V esuviusrises from within th e partially encircl ing walls of S omma. F romthe summit is sue forth sulphurous vapors , but no flame .

O U T E R R I N G O F B A S A L T .

P iazz i S my th, who during a prolonged vist to this m ountainin 1856 made a careful survey of its form and structure

,shows

that the great cone is surrounded by an outer ring of basaltenclos ing two foci of eruption , th e lavas from wh ich have brokenthrough th e ring of th e outer crater on the western s ide

,and have

poured down the mountain . A t th e top of th epeak its once activecrater is filled up, and we find a convex surface (“ T h e P lain of

R ambleta”)surmounted towards its eastern end by a dim inutive

cone, 500 feet high

,called H umboldt’s A sh Cone .

” T he slopeof the great cone of T eneriffe ranges from 28

° to and below alevel of 7000 feet th egeneral slopeof the whole mountain down tothe water’s edge varies from 10

° to 1 2°from th e horizontal . T he

great cone i s penetrated by numerous basaltic dykes .

T heCape de V erde I sl ands, which contain beds of limestonealong with volcanic matter, possess in the is land of F uego anactive volcano, rising to a height of 7000 feet above th e surface ofthe ocean . T h e central cone, like th at of T eneriffe, rises fromwithin an outer crater, formed of basalt alternating with beds ofagglomerate

,and traversed by numerous dykes of lava. T his has

been broken down on one s ide like that of S omma ; andover itsflanks are scattered numerous cones of scoria, the m ost recentdating from the years 1785 and 1799.

CH A PT E R XV I I

A M A Z I N G PH E N O M E N A CO N N E CT E D W I T H V O L CA N O E S A N D

E A R T H Q U A K E S .

— F I E R Y E X P L O S I O N S A N D M O U N T A I N S I N

CoN V U L S I O N s .

—CH A N G E S I N T H E S U R F A CE O F T H E E A R T H

BY S I R . JO H N F . W . H E R S CH E L , BA R T .

!T he follow ing accurate and scientific account of the causes and

effects of volcanoes and earthquakes is furnished by the m ost em inentauthority on these subjects knownto the world, and is of special interest inconnectionwith thegreat disasters

PU R PO S E to say something about volcanoes and earthquakes .

I t i s a subject I h ave thought a good deal about,andthough I

have never been so fortunate as to have been shaken out of mybed by an earthquake

,sti ll I h ave climbed the cones of V esuvius

and E tna, hammer in hand and barometer on back , and have wandered over andgeologized among

,I believe

,nearly all the principal

scenes of extinct volcanic activity in E urope .

E very one knows that a volcano is a m ountain that vom itsout fire

,and smoke

,and Cinders

,and melted lava

,and sulphur, and

steam,and gases

,and all kinds of horrible things ; nay , even

sometimes mud,and boiling water

,and fishes ; and everybody

has heard or read of th e earth opening,and swallowing up man

and beast,and houses and churches ; and closing on them with a

snap,and smashing them to pieces ; and then perhaps opening

again, and casting them out with a flood of dirty water from some

210 AMA ZI N G PH E N O ME N A O F V O L CA N O E S .

Andperhaps some may have been tem pted to ask wh y andhow it is that G odhas permitted this fair earth to be vis ited withsuch destruction . I t canhardl y be for the s ins of men forwhenthese th ings occur they involve alike th e innocent and the guiltyand besides ,

th e volcano and the earthquake were raging on thisearth with as much

,nay greater violence

,thousands and thou

sands of years before man set foot upon it. But perhaps , on theother h and

,it may have occurred to some to ask them selves

whether it i s not j ust poss ible th at these ug l y affairs are sentamong us for somebeneficentpurposes or at all events that th eymay form part and parcel of some great sch eme of providentialarrangement which i s at work for good and not for ill .

I N C I D E N T A L CA T A S T R O P H E S .

A ship sometimes s trikes on a rock,and all on board perish ;

arailway train runs into another,or breaks down

,and then wounds

andcontus ions are the order of th e day but nobody doubts thatnavigation and railway communication are great bless ings . N oneof th e great natural provis ions for producing good are exempt intheir workings from producing occas ional mischief . S torms

disperse and dilute pestilental vapors, and lightnings decomposeand destroy them ; but both the one and the other often annihilatethe works of man

,and inflict upon him sudden death .

W ell , then, I think I shall be able to show that the volcanoandthe earthquake

,dreadful as they are

,as local and temporary

vis itations,are in fact unavoidable (I had almost said necessary)

incidents in a vast s ystem of action to which we owe th e veryground we stand upon

,the very land we inhabit

,without which

neither man,beast

,norbird would have a place fortheir existence

,

andtheworld would be the habitation of nothing but fis h es .

N ow,to make this clear

,I must go a l ittle out of my way

andsay something about the first principles of geology. G eologydoes not pretend to go back to thecreation of th eworld, or concernitself about its primitive state, but it does concern itself with thechanges it sees going on in it now,

and with the evidence of a longM es of such changes it can produce in th emost unmistakable

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212 A MA ZI N G PH E N O M E N A O F V O L CA N O E S .

court H ill and S even O aks ? A ll.

clean gone,and swept out into

th e bosom of th e A tlantic, and there form ing other ch alk-beds .

N ow, geolog y assures us, on th e most conclus ive and undeniable

evidence,th at all our present land

,all our continents and islands

have been formed in this way out of th e ruins of former ones . T he

oldones wh ich existed at th e beg inning of th ing s have all perish ed

,and wh at we now stand upon h as most assuredl y been

,at

one time or other,perh aps many times

,th e bottom of the sea.

W ell,then

,there i s power enough at work

,and it has been

at work long enough utterl y to have cleared away and spread overth e bed of the seaall our present existing continents and islands

,

had they been placed where they are at th e creation of th eworldand from this it follows as clear as demonstration can make it

,

th at w it h out some process of renovation and restoration to act inantagonism to this destructive work of old N eptune

,therewould

not now be remaining a foot of dry land for l iving thing to standupon .

W E R E H O I S T E D A T O N E B L O W !

N ow,what is this process of restoration ? L et the volcano

and th e earthquake tell their tale. L et th e earthquake tell how,within th em emory of man— under th e eyes ight of eye-witnes ses,one of whom (M rs . G raham)h as des cribed th e fact —the wholecoast lineof Chili

,for one hundred m iles about V alparaiso

,with

the m igh ty ch ain of the A ndes— mountains to which the A lpss ink into ins ignificance— was hois ted at one blow (in a singlenight

,N ov. 19, A . D . 1822)from two to seven feet above its former

level,leaving th e beach below th e old water mark high and dry

leaving th e shell-fish sticking on th e rocks out of reach of water ;leaving the seaweed rotting in th e air

,or rather dry ing up to dust

under th eburning sunof a coast where rain never falls .

T h e ancients had a fable of T itan hurled from heaven andburiedunder E tna, and by h is s truggles caus ing the earthquakesthat desolated S icily . But here we have anexhibition of T itanicforces on a farmightier scale. O ne of the A ndes upheaved onthis occasion was th eg igantic mas s of A conagva, wh ich overlooksV alparaiso. T o bring home to the m ind th e conception of such

A MA ZI N G PH E N O ME N A O F V O L CA N O E S . 213

anefl'

ort, we must form a clear idea of what sort of mountain th is

is . I t is nearly feet in height .Chimborazo, th e loftiest of th e volcanic cones of the A ndes

,

is lower by 2,500 feet ; and yet E tna, with V esuvius at the top of

it,and another V esuvius piled on that

,would little more than

surpass th e m idway portion of th e snow-covered portion of thatcone

,which i s one of the many ch imney s by wh ich th e h idden

fires of th e A ndes fine vent . O n th e occas ion I am speaking of,

at least ten thousand square miles of country were estimatedashaving been upheaved, and the upheaval was not confined to theland

,but extended far away to sea

,which was proved by the

soundings off V alparaiso and along the coast,having been found

considerabl y s hallower than they were before the shock.

A gain,in th e year 18 19 , in an earthquake in I ndia, in thedis

triot of Cutch, bordering on th e I ndus,a tract of country more

th an fi fty m iles long and s ixteen broad was suddenly raised tenfeet above its former level . T he raised portion s till stands upabove the unraised like a long perpendicular wall

,which i s known

by the name of the “U llah Bund,” or “

G od’s W all .”

G I G A N T I C U P H E A V A L S .

Andagain,in 1538, inthat convulsion which threw up the

M onte N uovo (N ew M ountain), a cone of ashes 450 feet high, ina s ing le night ; the whole coast of P ozzuoli

,near N aples

,was

raised twenty feet above its former level,and remains so perma

uentl y upheaved to this day . And I could mention innumerableother instances of the same kind.

T his,then

,i s the manner in which th e earthquake does its

work ; and it is always at work. S omewh ere or other in th e world,

th ere is perhaps not a day,certainly not a month

,without an

earthquake. I n those districts of S outh and Central A merica,

where the great chain of volcanic cones is situated— Chimborazo,

Cotopaxi, and a long list with names unmentionable, or at least

214 AMAZI NG PH E N O ME NA orvom ANom.

rarity . E ven inour ownisland, nearPerth , 9. year seldom passeswithout a shock, happily, within the records of history

,never

powerful enough to do any mischief.I t is not everywhere that this process goes on by fits and

starts . F or instance, the northern gulfs , and borders of theB altic S ea, are steadil y shallowing ; and the whole m ass of S candinavia including N orway , S wedenand L apland, i s ris ing out ofth e seaat the average rate of about two feet per century . Butas

this fact (which is perfectl y well established by reference to

ancient h igh and low water marks)i s not so evidently connectedW ith the action of earthquakes . I shall not refer to it j ust now.

A ll that I want to show i s,that there is a great cycle of

ch anges going on, in which the earthquake and volcano act a veryconspicuous part, and that part a restorative and conservativeone in opposition to the steadily destructive and level ing actionof the ocean waters .

CA U S E S O F T H E P H E N O M E N A .

H ow this can h appen what can be the origin of such anenorm ous power thus occasionall y exerting itsel f

,will no doubt

seem very marvelous— little short,indeed

,of miraculous inter

vention— but th emys tery,after all

,i s not quite so great as at first

seem s . W e are permitted to look a little way into these greatsecrets not farenough

,indeed

,to clear up every difficulty

,but

quite enough to penetrate us with admiration of that wonderfulsy stem of counterbalances and compensations ; th at adj ustmentof causes and consequences

,by which

,throughout all nature

,

evils are made to work theirowncure life to spring out of deathand renovation to tread in the steps and efface the vestiges ofdecay .

T he key to the whole affair is to be found in the central heatof the earth . T his is no scientific dream,

no theoretical notion,

but a fact establ ished by direct evidence up to a certain point,and

standing out from plainfacts as a matter of unavoidable conclusion , ina hundred ways .

W eall know that when we go into a cellar out of asummer

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216 A MA ZI N G PH E N O M E N A O F V O L CA N O E S .

water always comes up hot ; and the deeper the boring, the hotterthewater. T here is a very famous boring of this sort in Paris , atL aG renelle . T he w ater rises from a depth of 1794 feet, and itstem perature i s 82° of our s cale

,wh ich is almost th at of the

equator. A nd,again

,at S alz werth , in O eynhausen, in G ermany ,

in a boring for salt springs 2 144 feet deep , the sal t water comesup with with a s t i ll higher heat

,viz .

, 9 1°

T hen , again, we h ave natural hot water springs , which rise,it i s true

,from depth s we have no means of ascertaining ; but

which,from th e earliest recorded times

,have alway s maintained

the same heat . A t Bath,for instance

,the hottest well i s 1 17

°

F ahr . O nth e A rkansas R iver, in the U nited S tates , i s a springof 180

° which is scalding hot ; and that out of the neighborhoodof any volcano.

M A S S O F R E D-H O T I R O N .

N ow,only consider what sortof a conclusion this lands us in.

T h is g lobe of ours i s 8000 miles in diameter a m ile deep on itssu rface is a mere s cratch . I f a m anhad twenty greatcoats on

,

and I found under th e first a warm th of 60° above the external

air,I should expect to find 60 ° more under the second

,and 60 ° more

under th e th ird,andso on and

,within all

,noman

,but a. mas s of

red-hot iron .

Just sowith th e outside crust of the earth . E very mile thickis such agreatcoat

,and at twenty miles depth

,according to th is

rate,the ground mus t be fully red-hot ; and at no such very great

depth beyond,either th e whole must be melted

,or only th e most

infus ible and intractable kinds of material,such as our fireclays

andflints,would present some degree of solidity .

I nshort,what the icefloes and iceberg s are to th e polar seas,

sowe shall come to regard our continents and m ountain-rangesin relation to the oceanof melted m atter beneath . I do notmeanto say there is no sol id central mas s there may be one

,or there

may not, and, upon th e whole, I think it l ikely enough that thereis— kept sol id, in spite of th e heat

,by th e enormous pressure ,

but that has noth ing to dowith the present argument .

AMA Z I N G PH E N O ME N A O F V O L CA N O E S . 217

A ll that I contend for is this— G rant me a seaof liquid fire,

onwhich we are all floating— land and sea; for th e bottom of the

seaanyhow will not come nearly down to the lavalevel. T h eseais

probably nowh ere more than fiveor s ix miles deep,which i s far

enough above that level to keep its bedfrom becom ing red-hot .W ell

,now, the l and i s perpetuall y wearing down, andth e

materials being carried out to sea. T h e coat of heavier m atter i sthinning off towards th eland

,and th icken ing over all th ebedof th e

sea. W hat must happen ? I f a s h i p floateven on h erkeel,trans

ferweight from th e s tarboard to h er larboard s ide,will sh e con

tinue to float even N o,certainly . S hew ill heel over to larboard.

M any a good ship has gone to th ebottom in th is way . I f th e

continents bel igh tened, they will rise i f th ebedof th e seareceiveadditional weight, it will s ink °

B O T T O M O F T H E O CE A N S I N K I N G .

T h ebottom of the Pacific is s inkin g inpoint of fact . N ot0 ,

that the P acific i s becom ing deeper. T his seem s a paradox but

it i s eas il y explained. T h e wholebedof th e sea i s in the act ofbeing pres sed down by the lay ing on of new solid substance overits bottom . T h enew bottom then i s laidupon th eold

,andso th e

actual bedof th e ocean remains at or nearl y at th e same distancefrom th e surface water. But what becomes of th e islands T heyform part and parcel of th e old bottom and Dr. Darwin has

shown, by th e mos t curious and convinc i ng proofs , th at they are

S inking, and have been s inking for ages , and areonly kept abovewater -by what, th ink you ? By th e labors of th e coral insects ,wh ich alway s buildup to th e surface

I t i s imposs iblebut th at this increase of pressure in some

places and rel ief in others must be very unequal in their bearing s .

218 AMA ZING PH E NO ME N A O F V O L CANO E S .

I h avetold you of agreatcrackdrawnacross thecountry ,notfar from the coas t line ; the island country rose ten feet , but muchof th e sea-coast, andprobably a largetract inthe bed of the I ndianO cean, sank cons iderably below its former level . Andj us t as youseewhen a crack takes place in ice, the water oozes up so thiskind of thing i s always , or almost always, followed by an upburstof th e subterranean fiery matter. T h e earthquake of Cutch wasterminated by the outbreak of avolcano at the townof Bhooi,wh ichitdestroyed .

N ow where,following out this idea, should we naturally

expect such cracks and outbreaks to happen ? W h y , of course,along those lines where the relief of pressure on the land s ide i sthegreatest, and also its increase on the seas ide that is to say,along or in the neighborhood of the sea-coasts , where the destruc-ction of the land i s going on with most activity .

CL O S E T O T H E CO A S T L I N E .

W ell, now,it i s a remarkable fact in the history of volcanoes,

th at th ere i s hardly an instance of an active volcano at any con:

s iderable distance from the seacost. A ll the great volcanic chainof the A ndes is close to the westerncoast line of A merica. E tnais close to the sea; soi s V esuvius ; T eneriffe i s very near theA frican coas t M ount E rebus is on the edge of th e great A ntarticcontinent .

O ut of 225 volcanoes which are known to be in actual eruptionover the whole earth within the last 150 years, I remember onlya single instance of one more than 320 miles from the sea, andthat is on the edge of th e Caspian, the largest of the inland seasI meanM ount Demawendin Pers ia.

S uppose from this , or any other cause,a crack to takeplace inth e crus t of the earth . Don’ t imagine that the melted matterbf i iw will s impl y ooze up quietl y

,as water does from under an

ice-crack. N o such thing. T here is an element in the case weh ave not cons idered ; steam and condensed gases . W e all knowwhat takes place in a h igh pressure s team-boiler,with what violencethecontents escape, andwhat havoc takes place.

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220 A MAZIN G PH E N O M E N A O F V O LCA N O E S .

with their tongues,pos itively applied to the g round and no m is

take . N O trifling dose of L acryma would be requiredt o washdown what they mus t have swallowed on th at j ourney , and I haveno doubt it was adm inistered pretty copiousl y after th e penancewas over.

N ow I come to cons ider the manner in which an earthquakei s propagated from place to place ; how it travels

,in short . I t

runs along th e earth precisel y inth e same manner,andaccording

to th e same mechanical laws as a wave along the sea,or rath er as

th e waves of sound run along th e air,but quicker.

T he earthquake which destroyed L isbon ran out from thence,as from a centre

,in all directions

,at a rate averaging about twenty

miles perm inute, as faras could be gathered from a comparisonof the time of its occurrence at different pl aces ; but there i slittle doubt th at it must have been retarded by having to traverseall sorts of ground

,for a blow or shock of any description i s con

veyed th rough th e substance on which it i s delivered with therapidity of sound in that substance.

S O U N D CO N V E YE D B Y W A T E R .

P erhaps it may benew to many to be told that sound i s conveyedby water, by stone

,by iron

,and indeed

,by every thing

,and

at a different rate for each . I n air it travels at the rate of about1 140 feet per second, or about th irteen miles a minute. Inwatermuch faster, more than four times as fast (4700 feet). Inirontentimes as fast feet), or about 130 m iles in a minute, so thatablow delivered endways at one end of an iron rod

,130 miles

long, would onl y reach the other after a lapse of aminute, and apull at one end of an iron wireof that length

,would require a

minute before it would be felt at th e other.But the substance of th e earth through which the shock is

convey ed is not only far less elastic than iron, but it does notform a coherent, connected body ; it i s full of interruptions , cracks,loose materials , and all of these tend to deaden and retard the

shock ; and putting together all the accounts of all the earthquakes that havebeen exactly observed, their rate of travel may

AM AZI N G PH E N O M E N A or Vorcanoss. 221

he takento vary from as low as twelve or thirteen m iles am inuteto seventy or eighty ; but perhaps the low velocities arise fromoblique waves .

T h e way, then, that we may conceive an earthquake to travelis this— I shall take th e case which i s mos t common

,when the

motion of the ground to-and-fro i s horizontal . H ow far each particularspot on the surface of the ground is actually pushed fromits place there i s no way of ascertaining

,s ince all th esurrounding

obj ects receive the same impulse almost at th e same instant oftime

,but there are many indications that it is often several

yards .

G R O U N D S M I T T E N B Y T R E E S .

I nth e earthquake of Cutch,which I have mentioned

,trees

were seen to flog th e ground with their branches,which proves

th at th eir stem s must have been jerked suddenly away for somecons iderabledistance andas suddenly pushed back ; andthe sameconclus ion follows from the sudden rise of th e water of lakes onth e s idewhere th e shock reaches them

,and its fall on th e oppos ite

s ide the bedof th e l ake h as been jerked away for a certain distance from under th e water and pulled back .

N ow,suppose a row of sixt y persons, standing a m ile apart

from each other,in a straigh t line

,in the direction in wh ich th e

shock travels at a rate,we w ill suppose, of sixty m iles per

m inute ; and let the ground below th e first get a sudden andviolent shove

,carry ing it a yard in th e direction of the next .

S ince this shock w ill not reach th e next till after th e lapse of onesecond of time, it i s clear th at th e space between th e two will beshortened by a yard

,andth e ground— th at i s to say , not th e mere

loose soil on the surface, but th e whole mass of solid rock below,

down to an unknown depth— compressed, or driven into a

I t i s this compres sion that carries the shock forwards . T he

m AMA ZI N G PH E N O ME N A or V O L CA N O E S

success ion,the base flying forwards

,andleaving th e top beh ind

to drop on the soil on th e s ide from which th e sh ock came .

T h is i s j ustwhat has happened in M ess ina in th egreat Catlah !

rian earthquake. A s th e shock ran along the ground,the houses

of th e F aro were seen to topple down in success ion ; beginningat one endand running on to the oth er, as i f asuccession of mineshad been sprung. Inthe earthquake in Cutch

,a sentinel stand

ing at one end of a long straight line of wall, saw the wall bowforward and recover itself not all at, once, but with a swell like awave running all along it wi th immense rapidity .

Inthis case it is evident that the earthquakewavemust haveits front oblique to th e direction of the wall (just as anobl iquelyheldrule runs along the edge of a page of paper while it advances,like a wave of the sea, perpendicularl y to its own length).

CO N CE R N I N G E X T I N CT V O L CA N O E S .

Inreference to extinct volcanoes,I may just mention that any

one who wis hes to see some of th e finest specimens in E uropemaydo soby m akingacouple of days ’ railway travel to Clermont

,in th e

department of th e Puy-de-Dome in F rance . T here he will find amagnificent series of volcanic cones , fields of ashes

, stream s of

lavas,and basaltic terraces of platform s , proving th e volcanic

action to have been continued forcountles s ages before the presentsurface of the earth was formed ; and all soclear that he who runsmay read their les son . T here can there be seen aconfiguration ofsurface quite resembling what teles copes sh ow in the most volcanicdistricts of the moon . L et not m y hearers be startled half themoon’

s face is covered with unmistakable craters of extinctvolcanoes .

M any of th e l avas of A uvergne and the Puy-de-Dome arebasaltic that i s

,cons isting of columns placed close togeth er

andsome of the cones are quite com plete, and covered with looseashes andcinders

,j ust as V esuvius i s at this hour.

In the study of th ese vas t and awful ph enom ena we arebrought in contact with those immense and rude powers of naturewh ich seem to convey to th e imagination the impress of brute

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224 AMAZI N G PH E N O M E N A O F V O L CAN O E S

brief span of existence and man has leisure and opportunity tocontemplateandadore, secure of the watch ful care which providesfor h i s well-being at every instant that h e i s perm itted to remainon earth .

T he first great earthquake of which any very di stinctknowledge h as reached us is that wh ich occurred in th e year 63 afterour S aviour, wh ich produced great des truction in the neighborhood of V esuvius , and sh attered th e cities of P ompei i and H ercu

laneum upon the Bay of N aples , though it didnot destroy them .

T his earthquake i s chiefly remarkable as having been th e forerunner and the warning (if that warning could have beenunderstood)of th e first eruption of V esuvius on record, wh ich followedsixteen years afterwards in the year 79 .

D I D N O T K N O W I T W A S A V O L CA N O .

Before that time none of the ancients had any notion of its

being a volcano, though P ompeii itsel f i s paved w ith its lava .

T h e crater was probabl y filled,or at least th e bottom occupied

,by

a lake ; and we read of it as th e stronghold of th e rebel chiefS partacus , who, when lured there by th e R oman army , es capedwith h is followers by clambering up th e steep sides by the helpof th e wildvines that festooned them . T h e ground s ince th e firstearthquake in 63 had often been shaken by slight shocks, whenat length

,in A ugust 79, they became more numerous and violent,

and,on the night preceding th e eruption, so tremendous as to

threaten every thing with destruction .

A morning of com parative repose succeeded, and th e terrifiedinh abitants of those devoted towns no doubt breathed more freel y

,

and hoped th e worst was over,when

,about one o’clock in the

afternoon,th e E lder P liny , who was stationed in command of th e

R oman fleet at M i senum in full view of V esuvius,beheld a

huge black cloud ascending from th e mountain,wh i ch

,

“ ris ingslowly alway s h igher,” at last spread out aloft like th e head of

one of th ose picturesque flat-topped pines which form such anornament of th e I talian landscape.

T hemeaning of such a phenom enon was to P liny and to

AMAZI N G PH E N O ME N A O F VO LCA N O E S . 225

everyone a mystery . W e know now too well what it imports,

and they were not long left in doubt. F rom that cloud des cended

T E R R I F I C E R UPT I O N O F T H E G R E A T CR A T E R O F V E S UV I U S .

stones , as hes , and pum ice ; and the cloud itsel f lowered downupon th esurrounding countr3 involving land and seainprofounddarkness . pierced by flashes of firemore vivid than lightning.

la— I T A .

226 A MA ZI N G PH E N O M E N A O F V O L CA N O E S .

T hese,wi th th e volumes of ashes that began to encumber

th e soil,and which covered the sea with floating pum ice-stone ;

the cons tant heaving of th e ground andth e sudden recoil of thesea

,form a picture which is wonderfull y well des cribed by the

th e Younger P liny . I -I is uncle,animated by an eager desire to

know wh at was g oing on , and to afford aid to th e i nhabitants ofth e towns

,made s ai l forth enearest point of th e coast and landed

but was instantl y enveloped in th e dense sulphureous vapor thatswept down from the mountain

,and perished m iserably .

I t does not seem that any lava flowed on that occasion .

Pompeii was buried under th e ashes H erculaneum by a torrentof m ud

,probabl y th e contents of th e crater

,ejected at the first

explos ion . T his was most fortunate . W eowe to it th e preservation of some of th e most wonderful remains of antiquity . F or itis not yet much more than a century ago that

,in digging a well at

Portici near N aples,the T heatre of H erculaneum was dis covered

,

some s ixty feet under ground,— then houses , baths , s tatues , and,most interesting of all, a l ibrary full of books ; and those bookss till legible

,and among them the writings of some ancient

authors which had never before been met w ith,but which have

now been read,copied

,and published

,wh ile hundreds and

hundreds , I am sorry to say , still remain unopened .

P ompeii was not buried so deep ; th e walls of some of th e

buildings appeared among th em odern vineyards, andledto excavations which were eas y , the ashes being l ight and loose. And

there you now may walk through the streets,enter th e houses

and find th e skeletons of their inmates,some in th e very act of

try ing to escape. N othing can be more s trange and striking.

S ince that time V esuvius has been frequentl y,but very

irregularly,in eruption . T h enext after P ompei i was in the year

202, under S everus , and in 472 occurredan eruption sotremendousth at all E uropewas covered by the ashes , and even Constantinoplethrown into alarm . T his m ay seem to savor of th e marvelous ,but before I have done I hope t o show th at it i s not beyond whatweknow of the power of exis ting volcanoes .

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“28 E R UPT I O N S I N MA NY PA R TS O F T H E W O R LD.H

and which in great measure intercepted andconfined the glowingheat of th e ignited mass below.

I n such cases , and when cooled down to a certain point , themotion of the lava-stream i s slow and creeping rather rollingover itsel f th an flow ing like a river the top becom ing th ebottom

,

owing to th e toughness of the h al f-congealed crust . W hen itis sues

,h owever

,from any acces s ible vent

,it i s described as per

fectly liquid, of an intense white heat , and spouting or well ingforth w ith extreme rapidity .

S o S ir H umphrey Davy described it in an eruption at whichhewas present and so S irW illiam H am ilton

,in the eruption we

are now concerned w ith, saw it “bubbling up violentl y ” fromone of its fountains on th e slopeof the volcano

,with a hiss ing

andcrackling noise,like th at of an artificial firework ; and form

ing,by th e continual spl as h ing up of th e vitrified matter

,a sort

of dome or arch over th e crevice f rom which it is sued,

” which wasall

,internall y

,red-hot like a heated oven .

”

R U M B L I N G N O I S E S A N D E X P L O S I O N S .

H owever,as time went on

,this quiet mode of g etting rid of

its contents would no longer suflice,and the usual s ymptom s of

more violent action— rumbling noises and explos ions within th e

mountain ; puff s of smoke’

from its crater,and j ets of red-h ot stones

and ashes— continued till the end of j uly , when th ey increasedto such a degree as to exhibit at night the most beautiful fireworkimaginable.

T h e eruption came to its climax from th e sth to th e 10th of

A ugust, on th e former of which day s,after th e ej ection of an

enormous volume of white clouds , piled like bales of th e wh itestcotton

,in a m ass exceeding four times th e height and s i ze of the

mountain itself ; the lava began to overflow th e rim of the crater,

and stream in torrents down the steep slope of th e cone. T hiswas continued till the 8th

,when th e great mass of th e lava would

seem to have been evacuated,and no longer repres s ing by its

weight th e free d i s charge of th e imprisoned gases,allowed what

remained to be ejected. in fountains of fire, carried up to an

E R U PT I O N S I N MA N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R LD 2919

immense height in the air. T he des cri ption of one O f these Imus t give in the picturesque and vivid words of S ir W illiamH amilton himself.

“A bout nine o’clock,” h e say s

,on S unday

,th e 8th of A ugus t“

there was a loud report, which shook the houses at Portici and

N A P L E S , S H O W I N G M O U N T V E S U V I U S I N T H E D I S T A N CE

its neighborhood to such a degreeas to alarm the inhabitants anddrive them out into the streets . M any windows were broken

,and

as I have s ince seen, walls cracked by the concuss ion of the airfrom that explos ion. In one instant a fountain of liquid transparent fire began to rise, and gradually increas ing, arrived at soamazing aheight as to strike every one who beheld it with themos t awful astonis hment. I shall s carcel y be credited when I

280 E RUPT I O N S I N MAN Y PA RT S O F T H E W O R LD .

assure youthat, to the best of my j udgment, the height of th is

stupendous column of fire couldnot be less than th ree'

times that

of V esuvius itself ; which , you know, rises perpendicularly nearfeet above the level of the sea.

”(T he height of my own

measurement in 1824 is feet.)“Puffs of smoke, as black as can possibly be imagined,

succeded one another hastily , and accom panied the red-hot,transparent, and l iquid lava, interrupting its splendid brightnes sh ere and there by patches of the darkest hue . W ithin thesepud

'

s of smoke, at the very moment of their emission from thecrater, I could perceive a bright but pale electrical fire playingabout inz igzag lines .

T H R O W N U P W A R D T H O U S A N D S O F F E E T .

T he liquid lava, mixed with scoriae and s tones,afterh aving

m ounted, I veritably believe at least feet, falling perpendicularly on V esuvius, covered its whole cone, part of that ofS omma, and the valley between them . T he falling matter beingnearly as vividand inflamed as that which was continually issuingfresh from the crater

,formed with it one com plete body of fire,

which could not be less than two miles and ahal f in breadth, andof the extraordinary height, above mentioned ; casting a heat tothe distance of at least s ix miles around it .

“T hebrushwood of the mountain of S omma was soon in flame,

which,being of adifferent tint from the deep red of the matter

thrown out from the volcano,and from the S ilvery blue of the

electrical fire, s till added to the contras t of this most extraordinary

s cene . A fter the column of fire had continued in full force fornearly half an hour

,the eruption ceased at once, andV esuvius

remained sullen and s ilent.”T he lightnings h ere described arose evidently inpart from

the chem ical activity of gaseous decompositions going forward, inpart to the friction of steam

,and in part from the still more

intense friction of the dus t,stones and ashes encountering one

another in the air,inanalogy to the electricmanifestations wh ich

accompany the dust s torms in I ndia.

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232 E R U PT I O N S I N M A N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R L D

writh ing about th e black cloud th at surrounded them,and the

sulphurous smell and heat would s carcely allow them to draw theirbreath.

”

T h e next volcano I shall introduce is E tna, th e grandes t o’

.

all our E uropean vol canoes . I as cended it in 1824, and found itsheight by a very careful barometric measurement to befeet above th e sea

,which , by th eway , agrees within some eight or

ten feet with A dmiral S my th ’s m easurement.

T he s cenery of E tna i s on the grandest s cale. A s cendingfrom Catania you skirt the stream of lava which destroyeda partof that city in 1669, and wh ich ran into the sea, form ing a j ettyor breakwater that now gives Catania what it never had before

,

th e advantageof a harbor. T here it l ies as hard,rugged

,barren

,

and fresh-looking as i f it h ad flowed but yesterday . Inmanyplaces it i s full of h uge caverns great air-bubbles

,into which one

m ay ride on horseback (at leas t l arge enough)andwhich comm unicate

,in a success ion of horrible vaults

,where one m ight

wander and lose one’s sel f without hope of es cape.

B R I S T L I N G W I T H S M A L L V O L CA N O E S .

H igher up, near N icolos i , i s th e spot from which that lavaflowed . I t i s marked by two volcanic cones

,each of them a con

s iderablem ountain , called the M onti R ossi ris ing 300 feet abovethe slope of th e hill

,and which were thrown up on that occas ion .

I ndeed,one O f themos t remarkable features of E tna i s th at of

its flanks bris tling over with innumerable smaller volcanoes . F or

th e heigh t i s so g reat that th e l ava now s carcel y ever rises to th etop of th e crater ; for before th at, its immense weight breaksth rough at th e s ides .

I none of th e eruptions th at happened in th eearly part of thecentury

,I forget the date

,but I think it was in 18 19, and which

was described to m e on th e spot by an eye-witness— th e O ldMan

of th e M ountain,M ario G em ellaro— the s ide of E tna was rent by

a great fissure or crack, beginning near th e top, and throwing outjets of lava from opening s fourteen or fi fteen in number all theway down, soas to form a row of fiery fountains ris ing from di f

E R U PT I O N S I N MA N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R L D . 2“

ferent levels,and all ascending nearl y to the same height : t here

by proving them all to have originated in the great internal cistern as it were

,the crater being filled up to the top level .

F rom the summit of E tna extends a view of extraordinarymagnificence . T he whole of S icily lies at your feet, and far

beyond it are seen a string of lesser volcanoes the L ipari I slands,

between S icil y and the I talian coast ; one of which , S tromboli , isalways in eruption

,unceasingl y throwing up ashes , smoke , and

liquid fire .

But I must not linger on the summ it of E tna . W e will nowtake a flight thence

,all across E urope, to I celand— a wonderful

land of frost and fire. I t is full of volcanoes,one of wh ich

,H ecla

,

has been twenty-two times in eruption with in the last 800 years .

Besides H ecla,there are five others

,from wh ich in the same

period twenty eruptions have burst forth,making about one every

twenty years . T hemost formidable of these was that which happened in 1783, a year also memorable as that of the terrible earthquake inCalabria . InMay of that year, a bluish fog was observedover the mountain called S kaptur Jokul , and the neighborhoodwas S haken by earthquakes .

D A R K E N E D T H E W H O L E CO U N T R Y .

A fter a while a great pillar of smoke was observed to ascendfrom it

,which darkened the whole surrounding district, and

descended in a wh irlwind of ashes . O n the 10th of May , innum

crable fountains of fire were seen shooting up through the ice andsnow which covered the mountain ; and the principal river, calledthe S kapta, after rolling down a flood of foul and poisonous water,

234 E R U PT I O N S I N MA N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R L D .

ancient lava fields ; the other re-entered the bed of the S kapta

lower down ; and presented the astounding s ite of a cataract ofliquid fire pouring over what was formerly the waterfall of

S tapafoss .

T his was the greatest eruption on record in E urope . I t lastedin its violence till the end of A ugust

,and closed with a violent

earthquake ; but for nearly the whole year a canopy of cinderladen cloud hung over the island ; the F aroe I slands , nay , evenS hetland and the O rkneys , were deluged with the ashes ; the volcanic dust and a preternatural sm oke

,which obscured the sun,

covered all E urope as far as the A lps , over which it could not rise .

G R E A T D E S T R U CT I O N O F L I F E .

I t has been surm ised that the great F ireball of August 18,

1783, which traversed all E ngland, and the Continent, from theN orth S ea to R ome, by far the greatest ever known (for it wasmore than half a mile in diameter), was somehow connected withthe electric excitement of the upper atmosphere produced by thisenormous discharge of smoke and ashes . T he destruction of lifein I celand was frightful ; 9000 men , cattle

,horses

and sheep perished : mostly by suffocation . T he lavaej ected has been computed to have am ounted in volume to morethan twenty cubic m iles .

W eshall now proceed to still more remote regions , and describein as few words as may be , two immense eruptions— one in M exico

,

in the year 1759 ; the other in the island of S umbawa in the

E astern A rchipelago , in 18 15.

I ought to mention,by way of prel iminary

,that almos t the

whole line of coast of S outh and Central A merica, from M exicosouthwards as faras V alparaiso— that is to say , nearly the wholechain of the A ndes— is one mass of volcanoes . InM exico andCentral America there are two andtwenty , and in Quito, Peru , andChili, six and twenty more, in activity and nearly as many moreextinct ones , any one of which may at any moment break out

afresh . T his does not prevent the country from being inhabited,fertile and well cultivated .

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236 E R UPT I O N S I N M A N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R L D

an immense quantity of ashes,l avaand fragments of rock . T he

roofs of houses at the town or village of Queretaro, upwards of1 40 miles distant, were covered with the ashes .

T h e two rivers have again appeared, issuing at some distancefrom among the hornitos but no l onger as sources of wealth andfertility

,for they are scalding hot, or at leas t were sowhen Baron

H umboldt vis ited them several years after the event. T hegroundeven then retained a violent heat, and the hornitos were pouringforth columns of steam twenty or thirty feet high

,with a rum

bling noise like that of a steam boiler.T he island of S umbawa i s one of that curious line of islands

which l inks on A ustralia to the southeas tern corner of A s ia. I t

form s,with one or two smaller volcanic islands, a prolongation of

Java,at th at time

,in 18 15, a B ritish posses s ion

,and under the

government of S ir S tamford R affles, to whom we owe the accountof th e eruption

,andwho took a great deal of pains to ascertain

all the particulars lava itsel f, I should observe, is one rookeryof volcanoes

,and so are all th e adj oining i slands in that long

crescent-shaped line I refer to .

E X T R A O R D I N A R Y E R U P T I O N .

O n the isl and of S umbawa 1s the volcano of T omboro, whichbroke out into eruption on th e sth of A pril in that year

, andI

can h ardl y do better than quote the account of it in S ir S tam fordR affles’ own words :

“A lm ost every one, “

says this writer,i s acquainted with

the intermitting convuls ions of E tna and V esuvius as theyappear in the descriptions of th e poet

,and the authentic accounts

of th e naturalist ; but the most extraordinary of them can bearno comparison , inpoint of durati on andforce, w ith that of M ountT omboro in the i sland of S umbawa ! T his eruption extendedperceptible evidences of its existence over the whole of theM olucca I slands, over Java

,a cons iderable portion of the Celeb “

Sumatra and Borneo, to acircum ference of 1000 statute miletfrom its centre” (i . e., to 1000 m iles distance!,

5’ by tremendous

motions andthereport of explos ions .

E R UPT I O N S I N M A N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R L D 237

In a short time the whole m ountain near the S ang’irappeared l ike a body of liquid fire

,extending itself in every direc

tion . T h e fire and columns of flame continued to rage withunabated fury until thedarknes s

,caused by the quantity of falling

matter, obscured it about 8 P . M . S tones at this time fell veryth ick at S ang’ ir. some of them as large as two fists

,but generally

not l arger than walnuts . Between 9 and 10 P . M . ashes beganto fall

,and soon after aviolent whirlwindensued

,wh i ch blew down

nearl y every house of S ang’ ir, carry ing the roofs and light partsaway with it.

H U G E T R E E S T O R N U P

Inth e port of S ang’ ir,adj oi ning S umbawa , its effects were

much more violent , tearing up by th e roots the largest trees , andcarry ing them into th e air

,together with m en

,h orses

,cattle

,and

whatsoever came with inits influence . T h is will account for theim mense number of floating trees seen at sea. T h esearose nearlytwelve feet high er thanit had ever been known to do before

,and

completel y spoiled th e only small spots of rice land in S ang ’ir,

sweep ing away houses and everyth ing within its reach . T he

whirlwind lasted about anhour. N o explosions were heard untilth e wh irlw ind had ceased at about I I P . M . F rom m idnighttill th e even ing of the r1th they continued without interm is s ion

a fter th at time their violencemoderated and they were heard onlyat intervals ; but the explosions did not cease entirel y until the1sth of j uly .

“O f all the villages round T omboro

,T empo

,containing

about forty inhabitants, is the only one rem aining. In Pekaté

no vestige of a h ouse i s left; twenty-six of th e people, who wereat S umbawa at the time, are the whole of the population whohave escaped. F rom th e best inquiries , th ere were certainl y not

in T omboro and ‘

Pekaté at th e time

288 E RUPT I O N S I N MA N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R L D .

wherethevillageof T omboro s tood. A t S ang’ ir,it i s added

,th e

famine occas ioned by this event was so extrem e,that one of the

rajah’s own daughters died of starvation.

I have seen it computedthat the quantity of ashes andlavavomited forth in this awful eruption would have formed threemountains the s ize of M ont B lanc, the highest of the A lps andi f spread over the surface of G ermany, would have covered thewhole of it two feet deep . T he ashes did actually cover the wholeisland of T ombock, more than one hundred miles distant, to thatdepth

,and persons there perished by starvation

, from thetotal destruction of all vegetation.

L A K E O F M O L T E N L A V A .

“T hemountain K irauiah , inthe island of O wyh ee, oneof theS andwich I sles, exhibits the remarkable phenomenon of a lake ofmolten and very liquid lava always filling the bottom of thecrater

,and always in a stateof terrific ebullition, rolling to and

fro its fiery surge and flam ing billows- yetwith this it is content,for itwould seem that at least for a long time past there has beenno violent outbreak soas to make what is generally understood byavolcanic eruption .

“V olcan ic eruptions are almost always preceded by earthquakes , by which the beds of rock, that overlie andkeep down thestruggl ing powers beneath, are dislocated and cracked, till at lastthey give way

,and the strain is immediately relieved . I t i s chiefly

when this does not happen, when the force below is sufficient toheave up and s h ake th e earth

,but not tc burst open the crust

,

andgive vent to the lava and gases,that th e mos t destructive

efl'

ects are produced.

“T he great earthquakeof N ovember I , I 755,which destroyed

L isbon, was an instance of this kind, andwas one of th e greatest,if not the very greatest on record ; for the concuss ion extendedover all S pain and Portugal— indeed

,over all E urope, and even

into S cotland— over N orth A frica,where in one town inM orocco

8000 or people perished. N ay , its efl'

ects extended evenacross the A tlantic to Madeira

,where it was very violent andto

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240 E R U PT I O N S I N M A N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R L D

might be wanting,fires broke out in innumerabl e hou ses where

wood-work had fallen onth e fires, and much that the earthquakehad sparedwas destroyed by fire .

“And then

,too

,broke forth that wors t of all scourges

a lawles s ruflian-like mob, who plundered, burned, and murderedinthemidst of all th at desolation and horror. T he huge wave Ihave spoken of swept the whole coas t of S pain and Portugal . I ts

swell andfall was ten or twelve feet at M adeira . I t swept quiteacross the A tlantic, and broke on the s hores of the W est I ndies .

E very lake and firth in E ngland and S cotland was dashed for amoment out of its bed

,the water not partaking of the sudden

s hove given to the land, j ust as when you splash a flat s aucerfulof water, the water dashes over onthe s ide from which the shockis g iven .

O ne of th e most curious incidents in this earthquake was itseffect on s h ips far out at sea

,which would lead us to suppose that

th e immediate impulse was in the nature of a violent blow orthrust upward

,under th e bed of the ocean . T hus it i s recorded

that this upward shock was so sudden and violent on a ship,at

that time forty leagues from Cape S t. V incent,that the sailors on

deck were tossed up into the air to a height of eighteen inches .

M A I N M A S T S P L I T B Y A B L O W .

S oalso, on another occasion, in 1796, a British ship elevenm iles from land near th e Philippine I s lands was struck upwardsfrom below with such force as to unship and S plit up the mainmast.

“E vidences of a s imil ar sudden and upward explos ive action

are of frequent occurrence am ong the extinct volcanoes of

Auvergne and the V ivarais,where in many instances the perfora

tionof the granitic beds which form the bas is or substatum of the

whole country appears to have been affected at a s ingle blow,

accompanied with little evidence of disturbance of the surrounding rocks- much in the sameway as a bullet will pass through apaneof glass without starring or shattering it.

“Insuch cases it would seem as i f water in a liquid state

E R U PT I O N S I N M A N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R L D 241

hadsuddenly been let inthrough a fissure upon a most intenselyheated and molten mass beneath

,producing a violent but local

explos ion so instantaneous as to break its way through the overly ing rocks

,w ithout allowing time for them to bend or crumple.

and so displace th e surrounding masses .

“T h e same kind of upward bounding movem em enttook placeat R iobambo in Quito in the great earthquake of F ebruary 4,

1797, which was connected with an eruption of the volcano of

T unguragua. T hat earthquake extended in its greatest intensityover an oval spaceof 1 20 m iles from south to north

,and 60 from

east to west,w ithin which space every town and villag e was

levelled with th e g round but th e total extent of surface shakenwas upward of 500 m iles in one direction (from Puna to Popayan),and 400 in th e other. Quero

,R iobamba

,and several other towns

,

were buried under fallen mountains, and in a very few minutespersons were destroyed. A t R iobamba

,however

,after th e

earthquake,a great number of corpses were found to have been

tossed acros s a river, and scattered over th e slope of a h ill on theother side.

E A R T H S H A K I N G V I O L E N T L Y .

T h e frequency of these S outh A merican earthquakes is notmore extraordinary than the duration of th e shocks . H umboldtrelates than on one occasion, when traveling on mule-back with h i scompanion Bonpland

,they were obliged to dismount in a dense

forest, and throw themselves on the ground ; the earth beingshaken uninterruptedly for upwards of a quarter of an hourwith such violence that they could not keep their legs .

“O neof the most circum stantially described earthquakes on

record i s that which happenedin Calabria on the 5th of F ebruary ,1783 g; I should say began then, for it may be said to have lastedfour years . I nthe year 1783, for instance, 949 shocks took place,of which 50 1 were great ones, and in 1784, I 51 shocks were felt,ninety-eight of wh ich were violent. T he centreof action seemed

942 E RUPT I O N S I N MA N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R LD

shock, and within one of seventy miles radius all were seriousl ysh aken and much damage done. T he whole of Cal abria was

affected,and even across the sea'

M essinawas shaken, and a greatpart of S icily .

“T h ere i s noend of th e capricious and out-of-th e-way accidentsand movem ents recorded in this Calabrian earthquake. T h e

ground undulated like a ship at sea. People became actualy sea~

sick, andto give an idea of the undulation (j ust as it h appensat sea), th e s cud of the clouds before the wind seemed to be fit

fully arrested during the pitching movement when it took placein th e same direction and to redouble its speed in the reversemovement.

H O U S E S E N T O M B E D .

“A t O ppido many houses were swallowed up bodil y. L oose

objects were tossed up several yards into the air. T he flagstones

in some places were found after a severe shock all turned bottomupwards . G reat fissures opened in the earth,

and at T erra N ova9. mass of rock 200 feet high and 400 feet in diameter traveledfour m iles down a ravine. A ll landm arks were removed

,and the

landitsel f,in some instances,with trees and hedges growing on it,

carried bodil y away and set down in another place.“ A ltogether about peopleperished by the earthquakes

,

andsom e more of the epidemic diseases produced by wantand the effluviaof th e dead bodies .

V olcanoes occasionally break forth at the bottom of the sea,

and,when th is is th e case

,the result is usually th e production of

a new island . T h is,in many cases

,disappears soon after it’s

formation,being composed of loose and incoherent materials

which easily y ield to the destructive power of th e waves . S uchwas the case with the I sland of S abrina, thrown up in 18 1 1

,O ff

S t. M ichael ’s , in the A zores , which disappeared almost as soon asformed

,and in that of Pantellaria

,on the S icilian coast

,which

res isted longer, but was gradually washed into a shoal,and at

length has, webelieve, completely disappeared.

In numerous other instances, the cones ,of cinders and

scoria, onceraised, have become compacted andboundtogether

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244 E R UPT I O N S I N MA N Y PA R T S O F T H E W O R L D .

island,such as that of R athlin, remains to attest this former con

tinuity , and to recall to the contemplative m ind that sublimeantagonism between sudden violence andpersevering efl'

ort,which

the s tudy of geology impresses in every form of repetition .

“ T here exists a very general impression that earthquakesare preceded and ushered in by some kindof preternatural

,and

,

N E A R V I E W O F A V O L CA N IC CR A T E R I N S O UT H A M E R I CA .

as it were, expectant calm in the elements ; as i f to make theconfusion and desolation they create the more impress ive . T he

records of such vis itations wh ich we possess,however s triking

some particular cases may appear,by no means bear out th is as a

general fact, or go to indicate any particular phase of weather aspreferentially accompany ing their occurrence .

“T his does not prevent

,however

,certain conjunctures of

atmospheric or other circumstances from exercis ing a determining

E R U PT I O N S I N MA NY PA R T S O F T H E W O R L D . 245

influence on the times of their occurrence . A ccording to th e

view we have taken of their orig in (viz .

,th e displacement of

pressure,resulting in a state of strain in th e strata at certain

points, g radually increas ing to the maximum they can bear with

out disruption), it i s th e l ast ouncewh ich breaks th e camel ’s back .

G reat barometrical fluctuation,accumulating atmospheric pressure

for a time over the sea, and relieving it over th e land an unusuall y high tide

,aided by th e l ong-continued and powerful winds

heaping up the water nay,even th e tidal action of th e sunand

moon on th e solid portion of th e earth’s crust— all th ese causes

,

for th e moment combining,may very well suffi ce to determine

the instant of fracture,when th e balance between th e opp osing

forces i s on th e eve of subvers ion.

“ T h e last-mentioned cause may need a few words of expla~

nation . T he action of the sun and moon,though it cannot

produce a tide in th e solid crust of th e earth,tends to do so

,and

,

were it fluid,would produce it . I t

,therefore

,in point of fact

,

does bring th e sol id portions of th e earth ’s surface into a state

alternatel y of strain and compress ion .

“ T h e eff ective part of their force, in the present case, i s notthat which aids to lift or to press th e superficial m atter (for th atacting alike on the continents and on th e bed of th e sea

,would

h ave no influence), but that which tends to produce lateral displacement ; or what geometers call the tangential force. T hisof necess ity brings the whole ring of the earth’

s surface,which

at any instant has the acting lum inary on its horizon,into a

state of strain ; and the whole area over which it is nearly ver~tical

,into one of compression . W e leave this point to be further

followed out,but we cannot forbear remarking

,that th e great

volcanic chains O f th e world have, in point of fact, a directionwhich this cause of disruption would tend rather to favor th antocontravene.

CH A PT E R X I X .

E R U PT I O N O F E T N A I N T H E YE A R 1865.

—M U T U A L DE PE N DE N CE

O F A L L T E R R E S T R I A L P H E N O M E N A — S E A CO A S T L I N E O F

V O L CA N O E S — T H E PA CI F I C“CI R CL E O F F I R E .

”

TH E G reek mythology , harmoniz ing in this respect with theideas of most nations which were acquainted with volcanoes,

attributed to these mountains an origin al together independent ofthe forces which are in action on th e surface of the ground. A c~

cording to th e views of the H ellenes,water and fire were two dis

tinct elements,and each had its separatedomain, its genii, and its

gods . N eptune reigned over th e sea it was he that unch ainedthe storms and caused th e waves to swell . T he tritons followedin h is train ; the nymphs, s irens

,and marine monsters obeyed

h is orders,and in the mountain valleys

,the sol itary naiads

poured out to h is honor the m urmuring water from their urns . In

th e dark depth O f unknown abys ses was enthroned the gloomyP luto ; at h is s ide V ulcan surrounded by Cy clops, forged thunderbolts at h is resounding anvil

,and from their furnaces es caped

all the flames and molten matter th e appearance of which so

appalled mankind. Between th e gods O f water and of fire therewas nothing in common

,except that both were th e sons of Chronos ,

that i s,of T ime

,which modifies every th ing

,which destroys and

renews,and

,by its incessant work of destruction

,makes ready a

place for the innumerable germs of vitality which crowd on thethreshold O f life.

E ven in our days, the common opinion is not much at variance with these m ythologlcal ideas, and volcanic phenomena arelooked upon as events O f a character altogether different fromother facts O f terrestrial vital ity. T h e latter

,the sudden changes

of wh ich arevisibleand easily to be O bserved,arejustly considered to

beowing principally to the positionof theearth in respect to the sunandthe alternations of lightanddarkness, heat and cold, drynessandmoisture, wh ich necessarily result.

246

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248 M U T U A L DE PE N DE N CE O F A L L T E R R E S T R I A L PH E N O M E N A

by the lumps of lavawhich were hurled from the mouth of the

crater. Insome places heaps of ashes s everal y ards thick coveredthe slopes of th e volcano.

A fter th is first explosion, the m ountain never became completely calm numerous fissures , which opened on the outer slopesof th e crater

,continued to smoke, and th e hot vapor never ceased

to jet out from th e summit in thick eddies . O ften,indeed, dur

ing th e n igh t, th ereflection of the lava boiling up in th e centralcavity lighted up th e atmosphere with a fiery red. T h e liquid

,

being unable to rise to the mouth of th e crater, pressed againstth e external walls of th e volcano

,and sought to find an is sue

through th e weakest point of th e crust by melting gradually therocks that opposed its passage.

G R O U N D R E N T A S U N D E R o

F inall y , in th e night of th e 3oth to the 3 I st of January,

1865, th e wall of th e crater y ielded to th e pressure of the lava ;some subterranean roaring was heard ; s l ight agitations affectedth e whole of the eastern part of S icil y , and the ground was rentopen for the length of a mile and a half to th e north of M onteF rumento

,one of the secondary cones which rise on the slope of

E tna . T hrough th is fissure, which O pened on a gentl y-inclinedplateau

,th e pent-up l ava violentl y broke through to the surface.

T h e fis sure which opened on the s ide of the mountain,and

could be eas il y followed by th e eye to apoint about two-thirds ofth e height of M onte F rum ento

,in the direction of th e terminal

crater of E tna, seems to have vom ited out lava but for a very fewhours . Being soon obstructedby the snow and debris of the adj acentslopes

,it ceased to retain its communication with the interior of

the m ountain,and now resembled a kind of furrow

,as i f hol

lowed out by the rain-water on the s ide of the cone . O nth e 3 I st

of January all the volcanic activity of the crevice was concen

tratedon th e gently incl inedpl ateau which extends at the baseof M onte F rumento

,in the m idst of which several new hillocks

made their appearance.

O n the lower prolongation of the line of fracture,all the

M U T U A L DE P E N D E N CE O F A L L T E R R E S T R I A L P H E N O M E N A 249

phenomena of the eruption properly so-called were distributed ina perfectl y regular way . S ix principal cones of ejection wereraised above th e crevice

,and graduall y increased in s ize

,owing to

the debris wh ich they threw out of their craters . T hese,gradu

ally mingling their intervening slopes,and blending them one

with another, absorbed in succession oth er smaller cones whichhad been formed by their s ides

,thus reach ing a height of nearly

300 feet . S oon after th e commencement of th e eruption th e twoupper craters , s tanding close together on an isolatedcone, vom itednothing but lumps of stone and ashes

,wh ile jets of still liquid

lavawere em i tted by th e lower craters,which were arrangedin a

semi-circle around a sort of funnel-shaped cavit y .

H O W L A V A M A D E I T S E S CA P E .

In consequence of th e specific gravities of th e subs tancesevacuated

,a regular divis ion of labor took place between th e

various points of th e crevice . T h e projectiles wh i ch h adsolidifiedth e triturated debris

,and th e m ore or less porous fragments wh i ch

floated on th e top of th e lava,made th eir es cape by th e hig her

orifices ; but the liquid mass , being h eav ier andmore compact,could onl y burst forth from th e ground by the mouth s opening ata less elevation .

T wo month s after th e commencement of th e eruption , th econe which was th e nearest to F rumento ceasedto sendout eithers coriae or ashes . T he pipe of th e crater was filled up w i t h debris ,and th e internal activity was revealed by vapors either of a sul

phurous character or charged with hydrochloric acid . T hese roselike smoke from th e slope of th e hillock . T h e second cone,situated on alower part of th e fissure, remained in direct communication with the central flow of lava but it was not in a constantstate of eruption

,and res ted a fter each effort as i f to take breath .

A crash like that of thunder was th e forerunner of th e explosion ;

250 M U T U A L D E P E N DE N CE O F A L L T E R R E S T R I A L P H E N O M E N A

T hen, after having disch arged thei r burdens of debris , thedark clouds, g iving way to the pressure of th ewinds, mingled fatandwide wi t h the m i sts of th e h orizon . T h e lower cones , wh ichrose immediatel y over th e lava-source, cont i nued to rumble anddis charge molten matter outside their cavities . T he vaporwh ich es caped from the seeth ing wall of l ava crowded in darkcontort ions round th e orifi ce of th e craters . S ome of it was redor yellow ,

ow ing to th e reflection of the red-hot matter,andsome

was variousl y s haded by th e trains of debris ejectedwith i t ; but i twas im pos s ible to follow them with th e eye so rapid was theirfl igh t

. A nunintelligible tumult of h arsh sounds simultaneous lyburs t forth . T hey were like th e noises of saws

,wh is tles

,and of

h ammers falling on an anvil . S ometim es one m ight have fanciedit li ke th e roaring of th e waves breaking upon th e rocks duri ng astorm

,if th e sudden explos ions had not addedtheir thunder to all

th is uproar of th e elements .

H I L L S R O A R I N G A N D S M O K I N G .

O ne felt dismayed, as i f before some l iving being, at th e sightof these groups of hillocks , roaring and smoking , and increas ingins i ze every hour, by the debris which th ey vom ited forth fromth einterior of th eearth . T h e volcano

,however

,then commenced

to rest ; the eruptedmatter did not rise much beyond 100 yardsabove th e craters

,wh ile

,according to th e statem ent of M . F ouque

,

at th e commencement of the eruption it had been thrown to aheigh t of 1850 to 1950 yards .

During th e first s ix day s the quantity of lava which is suedfrom the fis sure of M onte F rumento was estimated at 1 17 cubicyards a second, equivalent to a volume tw ice th e bulk of th e S eine

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5352 MUT UA L DE PE NDE NCE O F A L L T E R R E S T R I A L PH E N O ME NA .

m i s fortune which was all theworse on account of the almost generaldefores t ing of S icily— awideband of forest, com pris ing, accordingto th e various estimates that were made, from totrees— oaks , pines , chestnuts , or birches— was completely destroyed .

W hen seen from th e lower part of th e mountain, all theseburning trunk s borne along upon the lava

,as i f upon a river of

fire,s ingularly contributedto the beauty of the spectacle. A s is

alway s the case inthe events of th is world, themis fortuneof someproved to be a source of g ratification to others . During th e earl ies t periodof th e eruption

,wh ile the villagers of E tna looked at

itwit h stupor, and werebitterl y lamenting over the destruction ofthei r forest s

,hundreds of curious spectators

,brought dail y by th e

s teamboats from Catania and M ess ina, came to enjoy at their easethe contemplation of all the splendid horrors of the conflagration.

P YR A M I D S A N D T W I S T E D CO L U M N S .

T he aspect of the current of lava,as it appeared coveredwith

its envelope of scoriae, was scarcel y less remarkable th an th e s ightof the matter in motion . T he black or reddish aspect of thecheire was all roug hened with sharp-edged projections

,which

resembled s teps , pyram ids or twisted columns , on which it was adifli cult matter to venture

,except at th erisk of tearing the feet and

hands . S ome month s after th e com mencement of the eruption,the

onward motion of th e interior of themolten stone,which

,by break

ing the outer crus t in every direction,had ultimatel y given it th is

rugged outline, was still visibly taking place . H ere and therecrack s inth e rock allowed a view

,as i f th rough an air-hole

,of th e

redand liquid lava swelling up as it flowed gentl y along like someVi scous matter.

A metall i c clinking soundwas incessantl y heard,proceeding

from th e fall of the s coriae,which were breaking under the pres

sure of th e l iquidmatter. S ometimes,or: th e hardening current

of lava, a kind of blister graduall y rose,wul: " either opened

gently , or burs ting with a crash gave vent to th e m olten masswhich formed it . Fumerolles

,composed of various gases

,acr‘m 'd-

i

‘ng tothedegreeof h eat of thelava wh ich gaverise tothem, jettm

MUTUA L DE PE NDE NCE O F A LL T E R R E S T R IA L PH E NO ME NA . 253

out from all the is sues . E ven on the banks of the river of stonethe soil was in m any places all burning and pierced with crevices

,

through which escaped a hot air thoroughl y ch arged with the

smell of burnt roots .

O n the slopes of F rumento, quite close to the upper part ofth e fissure

,at a spot where the l iquid m ass had flowed like a tor

tent,M . F ouquenoticed a remarkable phenomenon ; s heath s of

solidified l ava were surrounding the trunks of pines,and th

showingth eheigh ttowhich the currentof molten stone h t . i f . s elud.

In like manner, th e streams of obs idian whi ch flow rapidlyfrom the bas in of K ilauea

,in th e isle of H awaii

,leave beh ind

them on the branches of th e trees numerous s talactites like t heicicles wh i ch are formed by melting snow which has again frozen

,

Below th e es carpments of th e F rum ento,th e torrent

,which was

there retardedin its progress,had not contented i tself with bathingforam om ent th e trunks of the forest trees , but had laidthem low .

G reat tr unks of trees , broken down by the lava,lay stretched in

disorder on th e uneven bed of th e stream,and

,although they were

onl y separated from th emolten matter by a crust a few inches th ick,

numbers of them were still clothed with their bark ; several hadeven preserved their branches .

P I N E T R E E S A N D F I R S .

A t the edge of th echeire, some pine trees, which had perhapsbeen preserved from the fire by the moisture being converted byth e heat into a kind of coating of steam, were surrounded bywall of heaped up lava, and their foliage still continued green itcould not yet be ascertained i f the sources of the sap had perishedin their roots .

Insome places , rows of firs very close together were suflicienttochange th e direction of th e flow

,and to causea lateral deviation .

N ot far from the crater of eruption, on the western bank of thegreat cheire

,a trunk of a tree was noticed which by i stelf had

been able tokeep back a . branch of th e stream, and to prevent itfrom filling up the glen which opened immediately below.

T h is tree,being throwndownby the weight of the scoria, had

254 MUT UAL DEPENDENCE OF ALL T E RREST R IA L PH E NO MENA.

fallen soas to bar up a slight depress ion in theground which presented a natural bedto th e molten matter. T h e latter had bentand cracked th e trunk ,but had failed inbreaking it, andth e stonytorrent had remainedsuspended, so to speak

,above th e beautiful

wooden slopes wh ich it threatened to destroy completel y .

R ound the very mouth of the volcano,a vast glade was

formedin th e forest the g round was covered everywhere withashes wh ich th e wind had blown into h illocks , like th e dunes onth e sea coas t all the trees hadbeen broken down by the volcanicprojectiles

,and burnedby th e seorim and sm all s tones . T henear

est trees t h at werem etwith , at unequal distances from the mouth sof eruption, h ad hadt heir branches torn off by the falling lumpsof s tone, or were buriedinashes up to their terminal crown .

S E V E N T Y-F I V E R E CO R D E D E R U P T I O N S .

A spectator m igh t have walked among a number of yellowbranches wh ich were once th e tops of lofty pines . T hus

,on th e

plateau of F rumento and the lower s lopes,everything was

changed both in form and aspect we m ight j ustl y say th at, byth e eflects of th e eruptedmatter, th e outline of the s ides of E tnaitself hadbeen perceptibly modified.

A ndyet th is las t erupt ion , one of the most important in ourepoch

,is butan ins ignificant episodein the h istory of th emountain ;

it was but a mere pulsation of E tna . During the last twent y centuries only , more th an seventy-five eruptions have taken place

,

and in some of them th e flows of lava have been more thantwelve m iles inlength , andh ave covered areas of more than fortysquare m iles , wh i ch were once in a perfect s tate of cultivation

,

and dotted over w ith towns and villages . I n former ages,thou

sands of other lava-flows and cones of ashes have gradually raisedand lengthened the slopes of th e mountain .

T he mas s of M ount E tna, th e total bulk of which is three orfour thousand times greater than th e most considerable of th erivers of stone vomited from its bosom

,i s

,in fact

, from its summ it to its bas e, down even to the lowest subm arine depths

,nothin

gbut the product of success ive eruptions throwing out the molten

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256 MUT UA L DE PE NDE N CE O F A L L T E R R E S T R I A L PH E N O ME NA .

T h is ring of volcanoes does not exactly coincide with the

sem ici rcle formed by the coasts of A ustralia, the S unda I slands,the A siatic continent, and the western coasts of the N ew W orld.

L ike a crater des cribed within some ancient and more extensive‘

rutlet of eruption,the great circle of igneous mountains extends

PI CT U R E S Q U E V I E W O F L A K E T A U PO A N D V O LCA N I C M O U N T A I N S .

its immense curve in a westward direction across the waves of thePacific, from N ew Zealand to the peninsula of A laska ; on theeastit is based on th e coast of America

,rising in the south soas td

form some of the loftiest summ its of the A ndes .

T he still smoking volcanoes of N ew Zealand, T ongariro and

the coneof W hakari , on W h ite I sland, are, in the midst of thesouth ern waters of th e Pacific properly socalled . thefirst evidence

MUT U A L DE PE N DE N CE O F A L L T E R R E S T R I A L PH E N O M E N A . 257

of volcanic activity . O nthe north,a considerable space extends

in which no vol canoes have yet been observed. T h e group of th eF eejee I slands, at which the volcanic ring recommences, presentsa large number of former craters which still manifest the internalaction of the lava by the abundance of therm al springs . A t thispoint

,a branch crossing the S outh S ea in an oblique direction

from th e basaltic islands of Juan F ernandez as faras the activevolcanoes of the F riendl y group

,unites itself with the principal

chain which passes round,in a northeast direction, th e coast of

A ustralia and N ew G uinea .

G R E A T F O CU S O F L A V A S T R E A M S .

T he volcanoes of A brim and T anna,in the N ew H ebrides

,

T inahero,in the archipelago of S anta Cruz, and S em oya, in the

S alomon I sles, succeeding one after the other, connect the knot ofthe F eejees to the region of the S unda I slands, where th e earth isso often agitated by violent shocks . T his region may be considered as the great focus of the lava streams of our planet . O nth e

kind of broken isthmus which connects A ustralia with the I ndoChinese peninsula, and separates the Pacific O cean from th e greatI ndian seas , one hundred and n inevolcanoes are vomiting out lava,ashes

,or mud in full activity

,destroy ing from time to time the

towns and the villages which lie upon their slopes ; sometimes ,in their more terrible explosions

,they ultimatel y explode bodil y,

covering with the dust of their fragments areas of several thouands of miles in extent .F rom P apua to S umatra, every large island, including prob

ably the almost unknown tracts of B orneo, is pierced with one ormore volcanic outlets . T here are T imor

,F lores

, S umbawa,L ombok, B ali, and Java, which last has no less than forty-fivevolcanoes , twenty-eigh t of which are in a state of activity

,and

,

lastly , th e beautiful isl and of S umatra . T hen,to the east of

Borneo— Ceram,A mboyna

, G ilolo, the volcano of T ernata, sungby Camoens

,Celebes, M indanao, M indoro, and L uzon ; these formacross the sea, as it were, two great tracks of fire .

N orthward of L uzon, the volcanic ring curves graduall y soasl7— I T A .

258 MUT U A L DE PE N DE NCE O F A L L T E R R E S T R I A L PH E N O M E N A.

to follow a direction parallel to the coas t of A sia . F ormosa, theL iou-K ieou arch ipelago, and other groups of islands s t and in a

line over th e submarine volcanic fissure farther on,thereare th e

numerous volcanoes of Japan , one of whi ch ,Fus iyam a, w ith a

cone of admirable regularity , i s looked upon by th e inh abitantsof N iphonas a sacred mountain , from wh ich th e gods com e down .

T he elongated archipelago of th e Kuriles , compris ing about adozen volcanic orifices , unites Japan to th e peninsula of K am schatka

,inwh i ch no less than fourteen volcanoes are reckoned as

being in full activity .

T o th e east of t h is peninsula, th e rangeof craters suddenlych anges its direction

,anddes cribes a graceful sem icircle acros s th e

P acific,from Behring I sland to th e point of A l aska . T hirty-four

smok ing cones standont h is great transvers al dike, extending fromcont inent to continent . O unim ak

,wh i ch rises on th e extrem ity

of th e peninsula of A laska,th e peak of wh ich i s 7939 feet in

h eigh t,serves as the western l i m i t of th e N ew ‘

W orld,and i s also

pierced by a crater in a state of full activity .

V O L CA N O I N A L A S K A .

E as tward of the peninsula, th e volcanic chain extends alongthe seacost of th e continent . M ount S t. E lias , oneof th e h ighes tsummits in A merica

,often vom i ts lava from its crater

,wh ich opens

at an elevat ion of feet. F arther to th e south,another

act ive volcano, M ount F airweather, rises to a height offeet . N ext comes M ount E dgecumbe, in L azarus I sl and, andthe volcani c reg ion of B ritis h Columbia . T h ewhole chain of th eCas cades , in O regon, as well as th e parallel ranges of the S ierraN evada and the R ocky M ountains

,are overlooked by a great

number of volcanoes ; but only a few of them continue to throwout smoke and as hes : these are M ount B aker

,R enier

,and S t.

H elens , enormous peaks to feet high .

I n Cal i fornia and N ort hern M exico,it is probable that the

basalt i c and trach tic mountains on th e coast no longer presentoutlets of eruption . S ubterranean activity i s not m ani fesany degree of violence until we reach

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260 MUT UA L DE PE NDE NCE or A L L T E R R E S T R IA L PH E N O M E NA.

Oarahuizo, Cotopaxi, A nti sana, P ichincha, I mbabura,andS angay,is often looked upon as but one volcano with several eruptionsit is the clus ter which , on th e southern coasts of the I s thmus of

Panama,corresponds s ymmetrical l y to the volcanic group of

A nahuac . S outh of S angay , which i s perhaps the most destructive volcano onthe earth , the chain of the Cordelleras offers '

novolcanoes fora length of about 930 miles ; but in S outhern P eruthe volcanic series recommences , andoutlets of eruption s till inaction open at intervals among extinct volcanoes and domes of

trachy te .

T he three smoking peaks of the inhabited part of Chili, themountains of A ntuco

,V illarica

,and O sono, terminateth eseries of

the great A merican volcanoes the activity of subterranean actionis

,however

,dis closedby some other less elevated craters down to

theextrem ity of the continent as far as the point of T erra-del“F uego. T his i s not all ; th e S outh S hetland I slands , s ituated inthe S outhern O cean

,in a linewith the N ew W orld, are likewise

volcanic in their character andi f the same direction be followedtoward the polar regions

,the line will ultimately touch upon the

coasts of the land of V ictoria,onwhich rise the two lofty volcanoes

of E rebus and M ount T error,discovered by S irJohnR os s .

V O L CA N I C C I R CL E R O U N D T H E E A R T H .

S tretching round th e sphere of the earth,the g reat volcanic

circle is extended toward th enorth by various islets of the antartic,

andultim atel y rej oins the archipelago of N ew Zealand. T hus iscom pleted the great ring of fire which circles round the wholesurfaceof the P acific O cean .

W ithin this am pitheatre of volcanoes a multitude of thosecharming isles , which are s cattered in pleiads over th e ocean , arealso of volcanic origin, and many of them can be distinguishedfrom afar by their smoking or flam ing craters . O f this kind aresome of th e M arianne and G allapagos I s lands , which containseveral orifices in full activity

,and more than two thousandcones

ina s tate of repose . A mong these we must especially mentionthe S andwich I slands, the lofty volcanoes of wh ich rise in the

MUT UA L DE PE NDE N CE O F A L L T E R R E S T R I A L PH E N O ME NA . 261

middle central bas in of the N orth P acific like so many cones oferuption in themidst of a former crater changed into a lake.

T heM anna-L eaand M auna—K ea, the two volcanic summ i tsof the island of H awaii

,are each m ore than feet in height

and the eruptions of th e first cone, which are still in full activity,must be reckoned among the most magnificent spectacles of thiskind . O nthe s ides of the M auna—L oaopens th e boiling crater of

V O L CA N O O F T O N G A R R I R O . N E W ZE A L A N D .

K ilauea,which is

,without doubt

,the most remarkable lava-source

which exis ts,

onour planet .R ound the circum ference of the I ndian O cean the border of

volcanoes is much les s distinct than round the P acific ; still it ispos s ible to recognize some of its elements . T o th e north of Javaand S umatra, the volcanoes of which overlook the eastern portionof the bas ins of the I ndian seas

,stretches th evolcanic archipelago

of the Andaman and N icobar I slands,in wh ich there are several

(cones of eruption in full activity . O nth e west of H indos tan,the

262 M U T UA L DE PE N DE NCE or A L L T E R R E S T R I A L PH E NO M E NA .

peninsula of K utch, andthedelta-of th e I ndus, are often agitated

by subterranean forces .

M any mountains onth eA rabian coast arenoth ing but massesof lava; and, i f various travelers are to be bel ieved, the volcanicfurnaceof these countries is not yet extinct . T heK enia, the greatmountain of E as tern A frica, has on its own summ it a crater stillin action— perhaps the onl y one which exists on th is continent.L as tly, a large number of islands which surround th e I ndianO cean on the west and on the south— S ocotora, M auritius, R eunion,S t. P aul, and A m sterdam I slands— are nothing but cones of

eruption,which have gradually emerged from the bed of the

ocean.

T h e volcanic districts which are s cattered on the edge of theA tlantic are l ikew ise dis tributed with a kind of symmetry roundthree s ides of this great bas in . O n the north

,Jan M ayen

,so

often wrapt in mist,and th e more cons iderable island of I celand,

pierced by numerous craters,H ecla

,the S kapta-Jokul, the K otlu

gaj a,and seventeen other mountains of eruption

,separate the

A tlantic from the Polar O cean . A t about 1500 m iles nearer theequator the peaks of the A zores, som e extinct and some stillburning

,rise out of the sea.

D E A D V O L CA N O E S .

T he arch ipelago of the Canaries,over which towers the lofty

mass of th e peak of T eyda, continues toward the south thevolcanic l ine of th e A zores

,and i s itsel f prolonged by the smoh

ing summ its of the Cape de V erde I slands . A ll th e other mountains of lava wh ich spring up from the bedof the A tlantic moreto the south appear to have completely lost their activity

,and on

th e coast itsel f there i s,accord ing to Burton

,onl y one volcano

still in action— that of th e Cameroons . W i th regard to the “ l ineof fire ” along thewestern A tlantic

,it is developed at the entrance

of th e Caribbean S eawith perfect regularity,like the range of the

A leutian I s les . T rinidad, G renada, S t. V incent, S t. L ucia, Do

minica, G audeloupe, M ontserrat, N evis , S t. K itts , and S t. E usta~tins are so many outlets of vol canic force

,either th rough their

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264 M U T UA L DE PE N DE NCE O F A L L T E R R E S T R I A L PH E N O M E NA .

vegetati on,when suddenly the sleeping force beneath is aroused

and some fres h volcani c outlet i s opened t hrough th e ground.

W hen V esuvius woke up from its protracted slumber toswallow up P ompeii and the other towns l y ing round its base, ithad rested for some centuries , and th e R omans lookedupon it asnoth ing but a li feless m ountain li ke the peaks of the A pennines .

Onth eother hand, it is very pos s ible th at some craters , from whichsteam and jets of gas are st ill es caping, or wh i ch have th rown outlava during th e h is tori c era

,h ave entered dec is ivel y into a period

of repose, ceas ing somehow to maintain their communication withthe subterranean centre of molten matter. T h e number of ventswh ich serve for the eruption of l ava car therefore

,be ascertained

in a merely approximateway .

H umboldt enumerates 223 activev lcanoes ; K eith Johnstonarrives at th e larger number of 270 , 90 of which are comprehended in th e islands and th e P acific c ircle of fire but thislatter es timate i s probably too small . T o th e number of theseburn ing mountains

,s tanding nearly all of them onth e sea-shore

,

or in th e v ic ini ty of some great fresh water basin,must be added

the salses, or mud-volcanoes , wh ich are also found near largesheets of salt water . W it h regard to the thousands of extinctvolcanoes wh ich ri se in various parts of th e interior of th e continent

,geology shows t h at th e seaused formerly to extend round

their bases .

CH A P T E R XX

T O R R E N T S O F S T E A M E S CA P I N G F R O M CR A T E R s .

— G A S E S P R O

DU CE D B Y T H E DE CO M P O S I T I O N O F S E A -W A T E R .—H Y P O T H

E S E S A S T o T H E O R I G I N O F E R U PT I O N — G R O W T H O F

V O L CA N O E S .

ON E of the m ost decisive arguments which can be used infavor of a free communication existing between marine

bas ins and vol canic centres i s drawn from th e l arge quantities ofsteam which escape from craters during an eruption

,and com

pose,according to M . Ch . S ainte-Cl aire Deville

,at leas t 999

thousandth s of th e supposed volcanic smoke. During the cruption of E tna, in 1865, M . F ouqueattempted to gauge approximatel y th e volume of water which made its escape in a gaseousform from th e craters of eruption .

By taking as h is s cale of comparison th e conewhich appearedto him to emit an average quantity of steam

,h e found this mas s,

reduced to a l iquid state,would be equivalent to about 79 cubic

yards of water for each general explos ion . N ow,as these ex

plos ions took place on th e average every four m inutes during ahundred day s

,h e arrived at th e result

,that the discharge of

water during th e continuance of th e phenomenon might beestimated at cubic y ards of water— aflow equal to thatof a perm anent stream disch arging fifty

-five gallons a second .

A dded to th is,account ought to have been taken of the enormous

convolutions of vapor wh ich were constantl y issuing from thegreat term inal crater at E tna, and, bending over under the pressure of th e W i nd

,spread out in an immense arch around the

vault of th e sky .

I ngreat volcanic eruptions it often h appens th at these cloudssuddenl y condensed in the higher layers ofin heavy showers of rain

,and form temporary

A ccording to the statements of

W CR ATE R S BE LCH ING TO R R E NT S or S T E AM.

covered with snow ,which it has jus t vomited forth in the form of

vapor. I t has bes ides been remarked that th e vapor wh 1ch ls sues

from volcanoes i s not always warm ; often, according to Pmpplg ,i t i s of the s ame temperature as the surrounding air.

A s was said long since by K rug von N idda, a G erman savant,volcanoes mus t be looked upon as enormous interm ittent springs .

T he basalt i c flows may be compared to s treams on account O f thewater wh ich they contain . I t is probable that m ost of the lavawh ich flows from volcanic fissures owes its mobility to theinnum erable part icles of vapor which fill up all the inters tices ofmoving mas s . Being com posed in great measure of crys talsalready formedin the body O f which may be noticed nodules andcry stals rounded by friction, the lava would be unable to descendover the s lopes i f it were not rendered fluid by its mixture withs team and the gradual s lacking in speed and ultim ate stoppageof t he flow are ch iefly caused by the setting freeof the gaseswh i ch served as a vehicle to the solid matter. O wing to thisrapidloss of their humidity

,basalts contain in their pores but a

very slight quantity O f water in com parison w ith other rocks .

Yet even old lava themselves contain as much as tento nineteenthousandths of water at the edge of the bed

,and five to eighteen

thousandths at the centre .

S E A -W A T E R D E CO M P O S E D .

T he various substances which are produced from craters alsetend to s how that sea-water has been decomposed in the greatlabaratory of lava . O rdinary salt or chloride of sodium

,which

is th e m ineral that is most abundant in sea-water,i s also that

wh i ch is deposited th e firs t and mos t plenti ful)y roundth e orifi cesof eruption . S ometimes, the s coriae and ash es are covered for avast space with a white efliorescence

,wh ich i s nothing but com ~

mon salt one m ight fancy it a shingl y beach which hadj us t beenleft by th e ebbing tide . A fter each eruption of H ecla

,the I ce

landers are inth e habit, it is said,of collec ting salt on th e slopes .

T he lava from t he eruption of F rum ento,analyzed by M . Fouqué.

contained about thirteen ten thousandths of marine salt.

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268 CRA T E R S BE LG I-I I N G T O R R E N T S O F S T E AM .

products of V esuvius, and sulphurous vapors as more especialto E tna. I t was stated (with Boussingault)that carbonic acidwas exhaledespecially by the volcanoes of th e A ndes ; and, withBunsen, i t was believed that combustible gases prevailed in th eeruptions of H ecla .

In h is beaut i ful investigations into th e various chemicalphenomena presented by E tna and th e neighboring volcani c out~lets

,such as V esuvius and S tromboli , M . F ouqué appears to have

established as a fact wh ich must be henceforth beyond dispute,that the gradual series O f these emanations is just that whichwould be produced by the decompos ition of sea-water . A dded tothis, we also find in lava iodine and fluorine

,both of which we

should expect to detect in it on account of their presence in sea

water. T he salts of bromine,O f which

,however

,only a slight

trace is found in sea-water,have not yet been detected in volcanic

products , wh ich , no doubt, proceeds from the difliculty whichchemis ts have experienced in separating such very smallquantities .

M E L T E D R O CK S .

T he other m attters ejected by eruptions are O f terrestrialorig in , and evidently proceed from rocks reduced by heat to al iquid or pasty s tate ; they cons ist principally of s il ica andalum ina, and contain, bes ides, l ime, magnes ia, potash, and soda .

O xides O f iron also enter into th e composition of lava,to th eextent

of more than one-tenth,wh ich i s a very cons iderable proportion

,

andwarrants us inlooking upon th e volcanic flows as actual torrents of iron ore sometimes , indeed, th is metal appears in a purestate . I t i s to this presenceof iron th at lava especiall y owes itsreddish color, and the sides of th e crater their diversely coloreds ides .

Compounds of copper, maganese, cobalt, and lead are also m etwith in lava ; but, in comparison with th e iron

,they are but of

sl ight importance. L astl y , phosphates , ammonia, and gases composed O f hydrogen and carbon are disc h arged during eruptions.

T he presence of these bodies is explained by th e enormous pro

CRA T E R S BE LCH I N G T O R R E N T S O F ST E AM , 269

sea-water. E hrenberg found the rem ains of marine animalculaein the substances thrown out ' by volcanoes .

I s the compos ition of the lava,and especiall y that of the vapor

and gases, the same in those eruptions which take place at agreat distance from th e ocean ? I t i s probable that

,as regards

this point,considerable differences might be es tablished between

the products of volcanoes placed on the sea-coast,such as V esuvius

and E tna, and those which rise far in the interior of the land, asT olima

,Jorullo

,and Purace. T his comparative study

,however

,

which would be calculated to throw light on the chemical phenomenaof deep-lying beds , has as yet been made at only a fewpoints .

H O T W A T E R U N D E R G R O U N D .

E ruptions are rare involcanoes s ituated far from the coas tand when they do take place

,scientific men do not happen to be

on the spot to study the course of the occurrence. Popocatepetl,

one of the most remarkable continental volcanoes,produces a large

quantity of hydroch lorics acid ; the snow from it,which has a

very decided muriatic taste,i s carried by the rain into the L ake

of T ezcuco,where

,in conj unction with soda

,its forms salt.

W hen the water, either of sea or rivers , penetrates into thecrevi ces of the terrestrial envelope

,it graduall y increases in tem

perature the same as the rocks it passes through . I t i s wellknown that this increase of heat may be estimated on the averageat least as regards the external part of the planet

,at 1 ° (F ahr.)

for every 54 feet in depth . F ollowing this law,water descending

to a point 7500 feet below the surface would show,in th e southern

latitudes of E urope, a temperature of about 212° But it

would not onthis account be converted into steam,but would re

main in a liquid state,owing to the enormous pressure which it

has to undergo from the upper layers .

A ccording to calculations, wh ich are based, it is true, onvarious hypothetical data

,it wouldbeat a point more than nine

miles below the surface of the ground that the expansive force ofthe waterwould attain suficient energ y to balance the weight ofthe

’

sup’

etincumbent liquid masses , andto be suddenly converted

270 CR A T E R S B E L CH I N G T O R R E N T S O F S T E A M

into s team at a temperature of 800 ° to 900° T hese gas!eous mas ses would then h ave force to l i ft a column of water ofthe weigh t of 1500 atm ospheres ; i f, however, from any cause

,

they can not escapeas quickl y as they are formed,they exerc i se

t hei r pres sure in every direction,and ultlmately find t hei r way

from fissure to fis sure until they reach the fused rocks whi ch ex1stin th edepth s . T o this inces s antl y increas ing pressure we must,therefore, attribute the ascent of the lava into vent-holes of volcanoes , the occurrenceof earthquakes , the fus ion and th e ruptureof the terrestrial crust, and, finall y , the violent eruptions of theimprisoned fluids .

But wh y should the vapor thus pervade th e subterraneans trata and upheave them into volcanic cones

,when

,by thenatural

effect of its overcom ing the columns of water wh ich pres s it down,

it ough t s imply to rise toward thebedof the sea from which itdes cended ? I nth e present state of science

,this is a question to

wh ich it seem s absolutely imposs ible to g ive a satis factory answer,

andgeologis ts mus t at least h ave th emerit of candidl y acknowledging their ignorance on th is point.

S T E A M I N V O L CA N I C E R U P T I O N S .

T he dis coveries of natural ph ilosophy and chemistry,

whichh ave been themeans of making known to us t h e enormous activityof s team in volcanic eruptions

,will doubtles s

,sooner or later

,ex

plain to us in what way this activity is exercised in the subterraneancavi ties . But at the present time the phenomena wh ichare taking place inthe interior of our globe are not better knownto us than th e h is tory of the lunar volcanoes .

Be this as itmay, th e direct observations whi ch h ave beenmade on volcanic eruptions have now rendered it a very doubtful

point whether th e lavas of various volcanoes proceed from oneandthe same reservoir of molten matter, or from the supposedgreat central furnace whi ch is said to fill the wholeof the interiorof the planet

. V olcanoes which are very close to one anothershow no coinzidence in the times of their eruptions

,and vomitforth at difl'

erent epochs , lavas which are mos t diss imilar both in

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272 CRA T E R S BE LCH I N G T O R R E N T S O F S T E AM .

noticed, the lavamay ascend to the summit of E tna, at a heigh t

of feet, without a s imultaneous flow of ri vers of moltens tone from V esuvius , S tromboli, andV olcano, wh i ch are respectively

but one-third, one-fourth, and one-tenth the hei ght of theformer. Inl ike manner, K ilauea, s ituated on the s ides of M aunaL oa, in th e I sleof H awaii, in no way participates in the eruptionsof th e central crater opening at a point 9800 feet higher up, andnot more th an twelves miles away .

I f there is any present geological connection between th e

volcanoes of one and the same region, it probably must be attributedto the fact of their phenomenal depending on the sam eclimatic causes , and not because their bases penetrate to one andthe same ocean of fire. V olcanic orifices are not, therefore,“ safetyvalves

,

” for two centers of activity may exis t on one mountainwithout their eruptions exhibiting the least appearance of

connection .

O P I N I O N S O F M E N O F S CI E N CE .

I solated as they are amid all the other formations on thesurfaceof the earth , lavas appear as i f almost independent of therest. Basalts

,trachytes

,and volcanic ashes

,are the comparatively

modern products which are scarcel y met with in the periodsanterior to th e T ertiary age. O nly avery small quantity of theselavas of eruption has been found in the S econdary and P alaeozoicrocks . F ormerl y , most geologists thought that the granites androcks s imilar to them had issued from the earth in a pasty orliquid state ; they looked

“

upon them as the “ lavas of thepast,” and believed that these firs t eruptive rocks were succeededageafter ageby th e diorites , th e porphyries, the trap-rocks, thenby the trachytes and the basalts of our own day

,all drawn from

a constantly increas ing depth .

T hey th ought also that, in the future, when the whole seriesof the present lavas shall have been thrown up to the surface,volcanoes would produce other subs tances as distinct from thelavas as the latter are from the granite . G ranites

,however

,differ

so m uch from the trachytes and basalts as to render it imposs ibleforus to imag ine that they have the same origin ; added to which.

CR A T E R S BE LCH I N G T O R R E N T S O F S T E A M . 273

thelabors of modern savants have proved that,under the action

of fire,granite and the oth er rocky masses of the sam e kind,

would have been unable to assume th e cry stall ine texture whichdistinguish es them . W e are

,then

,still ignorant how volcanic

eruptions commenced upon th e earth,and how they are connected

with the oth er great phenomena which have co-operated in th eformation of th e external s trata of the globe.

Considered s ingl y,each volcano is nothing but a mereorifice

,

temporary or permanent, through which a furnace of lava isbrought into commun ication with the surface of th e globe . T h e

matter thrown out accumulates outside th e opening,and gradually

form s a coneof debris more or less regular in its shape, whichultimatel y attains to considerable dim ens ions . O ne flow of moltenmatter follows another

,andthus i s gradually formed th e skeleton

of the mountain ; the ashes and stones thrown out by th e crateraccumulate in long s lopes ; th e volcano s imultaneously growsW ider and higher.

M O U N T S I N T O CL O U D S A N D S N O W .

A fter a long succession of eruptions,it at l ast mounts up

into the clouds , and then into the region of perm anent snow. A t

th e first outbreak of the volcano th e orifice i s on th e surface of theground ; it i s then prolonged like an immense chim ney throughthe center of th e cone

,and each new river of l ava which flows

from the summit increases the height of this condu it . T hus thehighest outlet of E tnaopens at an elevation of feet abovethe level of th e sea; T eneriffe rises to feet ; M auna-L oa,in H awaii

,to feet

,and

,more gigantic still

, S angay andS ahama, in the Cordilleras , attain to and feet inelevation .

T his theory of the formation of volcanic mountains by theaccumulation of lava and other matters cast out of the bosom of

the earth presents itsel f quite naturally to one’s mind. M ostussure and S pallanzani down to V irlet, ConstantS crope and L yell, have been led, by their inves.

tigations, to adop t it entirely ; indeed, in the present day it i s18— I

'

M .

274 CRA T E R S BE LCH I NG T O R R E N T S or S T E AM .

scarcely d isputed. I t is true th at H umboldt, L eopold vonBuch ?

and,following them ,

M . E lie de Beaumont, have put forth quite adifferent h ypothes is , as to the origin of several volcanoes , such asE tna, V esuvius and the Peak of T eneri ffe.

A ccording to t heir theory , volcanic mountains do not owetheir present conform ation to th e long-continued accumulation oflava and ashes

,but rather to th e sudden uph eaval of the terrestrial

s trata . During some revolution of the globe, th e pent-up matterin the interior suddenly upheaves a port ion of the crust of th eplanet into the form of a cone, and opens a funnel-shaped gul fbetween the dislocated strata, thus by one s ing le paroxysm producing lofty mountains , as we now see them . A s an importantinstance of a crater th us formed by th e upheaval and rupture oithe terrestrial strata , L eopold von Buch mentions th e enorm ousabyss of the I sle of P alm a, known by the natives under the nameof Caldron, or Caldera .

H U G E E U N N E L -S H A P E D CA V I T Y.

T he funnel-shaped cavity is of enorm ous dimensions,and is

not less than four or five miles in width on the average ; thebottom of it is s ituated about 2000 feet above the level of the sea.

Lofty slopes,from 1000 to 2000 feet in height, rise round the vast

amphitheatre,and abut upon inaccess ible cliffs

,the upper ledges

of which reach a total altitudeof 5900 to 6900 feet in height. T hehighest point

,the P ico-de-los-M uchachos

,i s covered by snow dur

ing the winter months and,although it penetrates to regions oi

the atm osphere which are of avery different character from thoseof the rest of the island, th e slope that i s turned toward the crateris so steep that blocks of stone falling from the summit roll downinto the enclosed hollow.

T he prodig ious cavity in th e I sle of Palm a was , perhaps, themost s triking ins tance that L eopold von Buch could bring forwardinfavor of h is hypothes is ; nevertheles s , th e exploration of thisisland, s ince carried out by H artung, L yell and other travelers .

invery far from confirming the ideas of the illustrious G ermangeologist. T he lofty s idewalls of the hollow appear to be form ed

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276 CR AT E R S BE LCH I N G T O R R E NT S O F S T E AM.

been originally deposited on the soil in sheets, which were either

horiz ontal or very gently sloped.

N evert heless , the recent observations m ade by S ir C. L yell,thoseof Darwin on the cones of th e G allapagos I sles , and of Danaon th e lava flows of K i lauea ; l astl y , th e remarks of the I taliansavants who studied on th e spot th e volcan i c phenomena of

V esuv ius andE tna, h ave satis factorily proved that, in moderntimes

,a great number of rivers of lava, and especiall y that of the

V al-de-Bove, in 1852 and 1853, have flowed over steep slopes varying in inclination from 15 to 40 degrees . I t mus t, bes ides , beunderstood th at the lava wh ich poured over the steepest s lopeswas exactly that portion which , not having experienced any causeof delay

,or met wi th any obstacle, in its course , presented layers

of the most uniform consistence and the most regular action .

CL E F T I N T H E E A R T H .

O neof th e stronges t arguments of scientific m en in favor ofthe t heory of upheaval i s , that certain volcani c mountains

,

especially that of M onte-N uovo, Pouz zoles, and Jorullo, in M exico,had been suddenly raised up by the swellings of the soil . N ow theunanimous tes timony of those who, morethan three centuries ago,witnessedth eeruption of M onte-N uovo, i s, that the earth was cleftopen

,afi

'

ording an outlet to vapor, ashes , s coriae, and lava, and thatthehill

,very much lower th an some of the subordinate cones of

E tna, gradually roseduring four day s by the heaping up of thematter thrown out . T h e total volume of th is eruption was nodoubt considerable

,but compared with the amount of matter which

floweddown upon Catania in 1669, or with th e rivers of lava fromS kaptar-Jokul , it i s a mass of no great importance .

A ddedto th is, i f th e soil was really upheaved, how was it thatthe neighboring h ouses were not thrown down

,and that th e

colonnadeof the T emple of N eptune,which s tands at the foot of

the mountain, kept its upright pos ition ? W ith regard to Jorullo,

which rises to a height of more than 1650 feet, the onl y witnesses .

of th is volcano making its first appearance were the I ndians , whofledaway to the neighboring heigh ts

,distractedwith terror.

CR A T E R S BE LCH I N G T O R R E N T S O F S T E AM . 277

W e have,therefore

,no authentic testimony on which we can

base an hypothes is as to any swell ing up of the ground in th eform of a blister. Quite the contrary, the travelers who havevisited this M exican volcano s ince H umboldt have discovered bedsof lava l y ing one over the other

,as in all other cones of eruption ;

and more than this , they have also ascertained that none of th estrata in the ground overlooked by th emountain have been at alltilted up .

I t i s true enough th at local swellings have often beenobservedin the burning matter issuing from the interior of the earth ; inmany places the lava is pierced by deep caverns

,and entire

mountains— especially that of V olcano— have somany hollows inthe rocks on their s ides that every step of the climber resoundson them as if in a vault . B esides

,the lava itself

,being a kind of

impure glass,is so pervaded by bubbles filled with volatile matter

that,when acted upon by fire

,so as to expel the water and the

gas , it loses on an average, according to F ouque, two thirds of itsweight .

M I X T U R E O F L A V A A N D V A P O R .

But these caverns,these hollows and bubbles , proceed from

the mixture of the lava w ith vapor which i s liberated withdifficulty from the viscous mass, or are caused by th elongitudinalrupture of the strataduring an eruption

,and can in no way be

compared to the immense blister-like elevation which would beformed by th e strata of a whole district being tilted up to aheight of hundreds

,or even thousands

,of yards

,leaving at

the summit,between two lines of fracture, room for an immense

cavity .

N one of these prodigious upheavels have been directl yobserved by geologists

,and none of the legends invented by the

fears of our ancestors,referring to the sudden appearance of vol

caniomountains,which have been s inceconfirmed . L astl y , the very

structure of the peaks which are said to have risen abruptly fromthe midst of th e plains testifies to the gradual accumulation of

material th at has issued from the bowels of th e earth . I t is,there

f ore, p rudent to dismiss definitely an hypothes is which marks

278 CR A T E R S BE LCH IN G T O R R E N T S O F S T E AM .

an important periodin the history of geology, but which, for thefuture

,can only serve to retardth e progress of science .

A s,when the burning matter seeks an outlet, the earth is

generally cleft open in a s traight line, th e volcanic orifices arefrequently distributed somewh at regularl y along a fis sure , andthe heaps of erupted matter follow one anoth er like the peaks ina mountain chain . I n other places , however, the volcanic conesri se wi th out any apparent order on ground that is variousl y cleft ,just as i f a wide surface hadbeen softened in every direction, andhad thus allowed the molten matter to make its escape, sometimesat one point, someti mes at another. F rom the town of N apleswh ich is itself built on a hal f crater in great part obliteratedto the I sle of N is ida, wh ich i s an oldvolcano of regular form ,

th e

Ph legraean F ields presents a remarkable example of this confus ion of craters .

L A N D S CA P E T U R N E D T O CH A O S .

S omeare perfectl y rounded, others are broken into, and theircircle is invaded by the waters of th e sea grouped

,for the most

part,in irregular clumps

,even encroach ing upon one another

and blending their walls,they g ive to the whole landscape a

ch aotic appearance. A s M r. Poulett S c rope very j ustl y rem arks,

the aspect of th e terres trial surface at th is spot rem inds one exactlyof th e volcanic districts of the moon

,dotted over

,as it is

,with

craters .

A s th e typeof a region pierced all over with volcanic orifices,

wemay also ment ion th e I shth mus of A uckland,in N ew Zealand

,

wh ich Dr. H ockstetter has reckoned,in an area of 230 square

m iles , s ixty-one independent volcanoes , 520 to 650 feet in heighton th e average. S ome are mere cones of tufa ; oth ers are heapsof s coriae, or even eruptive h illocks , wh ich have shedout roundthem long flows of lava . A t one tim e th e M aori chiefs usedtointrench themselves in these craters as i f in citadels ; theyescarped the outer slopes in terraces

,and furnished them with

palisades . A t th e present day , the E ng lish colonists , havingbecome lords of the soil, have constructed their farms and country

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280 CRA T E R S BE LCH I N G T O R R E N T S O F S T E AM .

and then,bringing all its weight to bear on the rocks which oppose

its passage, it ultim atelv completel y breaks down the edge of thecrater

,leaving perh aps only one s ide standing . A mong the

E uropean volcanoes , V esuvius i s the best example of these ruptured craters : before A . D . 79, th e escarpments of L a S omma,wh ich now surroundw ith their semicircular rampart th e term inalcone of V esuv ius , were th e real crater. T he portion of it whichno longer exi sts disappeared, andburied under its debris th e townsof H erculaneum and Pompeii .

I N CR E A S I N G D I M E N S I O N S .

A ctive volcanoes,however

,never cease to increase in all their

dimens ions,andsooner or later th ebreac h is ultimatel y repaired

th e remains of th e former craters are g raduall y h idden under th egrowing slopes of th e central cone. T hus a former crater onE tna, wh i ch was s ituated at a point t hree m iles in a s traight l inefrom th e present outlet, at th e commencement of th eV aldelBove,has been gradually obliteratedby thel ava of successiveeruptionsprolonged explorations on th e part of M M . S eyell and W altersh ausen h ave been necessary in order to find it out . T h e normalform of E tna is that of a cone of debris placedupon a largedomewit h long s lopes

,becom ing more and more gentle, and des cending

gracefully towardthe sea.

I n fact, in most of th e eruptions , th e lava does not rise as faras th e great c rater, and breaks through th e s ides of th e volcanosoas to flow laterally over th e flanks of E tna . T hese eruptions

,

succeeding one another in th e courseof centuries , bring about thenecessary result of gradually enlarg ing th e dome which constitutes th e mas s of th e mountain

,thus break ing the uniform ity of

the lateral talus . T he samething occurs w ith regard to V esuviuson th e side wh ich faces th e seacoas t . T here

,th e terminal cone

s tands on a k ind of dome,wh ich has been g radually form ed by the

coats of lavarunning oneover th eother. I f V esuvius continues tobe th e great volcanic outlet of I tal y

,andrises graduall y into the

sky by thesuperpos ition of l ava andashes,it cannot fail

, some time

or other, to as sume a form s imilar to th at of the S icilian giant .

CR A T E R S B E L CH lN G T O R R E N T S O F S T E AM. 281

T h e volcanoes wh ich present cones of almost perfect regularity are t h ose wh ich have their term inal outlet alone ina stateof activity

,and vom it out a larg e quantity of ashes or other

matter wh ich glides readil y over th e slopes . A mong this class ofmountains , those which attain any cons iderable elevation are

distinguished by their majesty from all other peaks . S tromboli ,although it i s not more than 2600 feet in heigh t

,i s one of th e

wonders of th e M editerranean . F rom its proud form,it w ill

readilvbe understood that its roots plunge down into the seatoan enormous depth th e slope of debris may be seen

,so to speak

,

prolonged under the water down to the aby s ses of 3000 to 4000feet

,which th e sounding-line has reached at th e bottom of th e

E olian S ea:A t S ight of it one feels as i f suspended in th e m idst of the

void,as i f th eship was s ail ing in th e air m idway up th e mountain .

T his feeling of adm iration m ingled w ith dread increases whenthis great pharos of th eM editerranean i s approach ed during th enight over th e dark-wavedsea. T hen th e sky above the summitseems all lighted up by th e reflection of the la va

,and a m isty

band of vapor m ay be dimly seen girdling round th e body of th evolcano . Inth e daytime th e impression m ade i s of a differentcharacter ; but it i s none th e less deep, for th e real grandeur ofS trombol i cons ists not so much in th e immensity of the mass asinthe harmony of its proportions .

S A CR E D M O U N T A I N S .

V ol canic mountains of an ideal form are those which infantnations have most adored . A mong these sacred mountains are

th e sublime Cotopax i of th e A ndes , O rizaba of M exico, M aunaL oaof H awaii, and F us i-Yama of Japan . T h e volcanoes of Java,and chiefly those in th e eastern portion of the isl and, also presenta very majestic appearance on account of their isolation .

T hose on th e western s ide are based upon an undulatingcauses them to lose th eir appearance of height ;t all th evolcanic m ountains rise up from verdant

plains like islands above th e waves of the sea, and command the

flu m us s BE LCH I N G renam eor sm u.

h oriz on far and wide with their enormous cones . Between the

Merap i and L aveemountains lies adepress ion , the highest ledgeof wh ich exceeds the level of the seaby only 31 2 feet . B etweenL avoe and V illis th e plain i s 230 feet in height . L astl y , theplains wh ich separate th e V illis and K eloeet mountains nowhereattain an elevat ion of more th an 200 feet above the ocean .

Inthe external details of their conformation many of the vol

A R E MA R KABL E V O LCAN O CR A T E R , I S L E O F JA VA .

canoes of Java present a regularity of outline which is all themore striking, s ince they owe it in great part to the monsoonrains, the most destructive agents of the tropical regions . Inbeating against the mountains

,th e clouds let fall their burden of

moisture on the slopes composed of ashes and loose scoriae. T helatter ofier but a slight res istance to th e action of the temporarytorrents which carry them away

,and, crumbling down into th e

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284 CRA T E R S BE LCH I NG T O R R E N T S O F ST E AM .

numerable sacrifices have been off ered to volcanoes to appeasetheir anger : impelled by a m ingled feeling of fear and ferocity ,th e priests of not a few religions have cast victims with greatpomp into th e gaping hollows of these immense furnaces .

S carcel y t hree centuries ago, when th e disciples of Christianity were exterm inated over th e whole length andbreadth of

Japan,the followers of th enew religion were thrown by hundreds

into one of the craters of th e U nsen, one of th emost beautifulvolcanoes of th e arch ipelago ; but th is off ering to th e offendedgods did not appease thei r anger, for, toward the end of the

eigh teenth century,th i s very same mountain andth e neigh boring

summits caused by t heir eruptions one of th e most frigh tfuldisas ters of any th at are mentioned in th e h istory of volcanoes .

A ctuated by a feel ing of dreadvery s im ilar to that exhibitedby th e j apanese priests , the Ch ri s t i an m issionaries in A meri carecognizedin th eburning mountains of th e N ew W orld not thewor): of a god, but t h at of th edev il , andwent inprocess ion to theedge of the craters to exorc i se them . A legend tells how th e

monks of N i caragua climbedthe terrible volcano of M omotomboinorder to quiet itby thei r conjurations but th ey never returnedthe monster swallowed them up.

CH A PT E R XX I

VA R I O U S K I N D S os L A V A — B E A U T I F U L CA V E I N S CO T L A N D -m

CR E V I CE S I N V O L CA N O E S — S N O W U N DE R B U R N I N G DU S T .

LA V A i s th e most I mportant product of th e volcanic fires . T h e

various kinds of l ava differ very m uch in their externalappearance

,in th e color of their substance

,and in th e variety of

their crystals,but they are all composed of s ili cates of alumnia

or magnesia,com bined w ith protoxide of iron

,potash or soda

,and

lime . W hen th e feldspathic m inerals predom inate,th e rock is

generally of a wh itish,gray ish or yellowish hue

,and receives the

name of trachy te . W hen th e l ava contains an abundanceof cry s«tals of augite

,hornblende

,or titaniferous iron

,it is heavier

,of a

darker color,and often more compact ; it then takes the generic

formation of basalt . N umerous varieties,diversel y des ignated

by geologists , belong to this group .

O f all th e lavas , trach y te i s th e leas t fluid in its form . I n

many places rocks of this nature have issued from th e earth in apasty state and have accumulated above th e orifice in th e shapeof a dome

,Just l ike a mass of melted wax .

” I n this way wereformed th e great domes of A uvergne, th eP uy s de Dome and deS arcouy . Inthis district th e flows of trach y tic lava are far inferiorin length to the basaltic cheires ; th emost important donotexceedfour or five miles in length .

A t the present day , eruptions of trachy te are much more rarethan those of other lavas ; so much so

,that certain authors class

all the trachytic rocks among the formations of anterior ages . I t

is , however, ascertained that most of the A merican volcanoes andthoseof the S undaA rchipelago vom it out lava of th is nature ; thelast eruptions of the ZE olian I sles, L ipari and V olcano, likewi se

pum ice-stone .

resembles certain white,yellow

,or

286 monvcrs or V O LCA NO ES .

of our iron-works, and is, like the compact trachyte, of afeldspath ic nature. S om e mountains are al mos t entirely composed ofit ; am ong others , the M onte B ianco of L ipari, which , viewed froma distance, appears as i f covered with snow . L ong white flows,l ike avalanches , fill up all its ravines , from th e sum m it of themountain to the shore of th e M editerranean ; the slightest movement causedby the tread of an animal or a gust of wind detachesfrom th e surface of th e slope hundreds of stones , which bounddown to the foot of t h e incline, and are borne away by th e waveswh ich bathe th e baseof the mountain .

In the southern part of th e T yrrh enean S ea, and especiall yinth e vicinity of the L ipari (ZE olian)I slands , the water i s sometimes covered wit h these floating stones

,almost like flakes of

foam . Inth e Cord illeras th e currents of fresh water convey th emorsels of pum ice to considerable distances . T he R iver A mazondrifts down large quantities of pum ice as far as its mouth

,more

than 3000 m iles from the place where it fell into th e river. B atessays that the I ndi ans

,who live too far away from the volcanoes

even to know of their existence,assert th at these stones , floating

down th e river by the s ide of their canoes,are surely solidified

foam .

A P P E A R A N CE O F V A R I O U S L A V A S .

T h e external appearance of various lavas differs even morethan th eir chemical compos ition . T hem ore or less perfect s tateof flui dity , and the presence in them of a greater or less quantityof bubbles of vapor, give a very different texture to rocks whichare composed of the same elements . P um ice-stone has th e

appearance of sponge ; obs idian looks like black glass andsometimes it is even sem i-transparent.

I t is entirel y liquid,and issues from th e interior of the earth

like a stream flowing rap i dly over th e steeper s lopes,and coagu

lating s lowly in large sheets in t he low g round and on th e gentleinclines wh ither its own weight has drawn it . T h e surface ofobsidian— for instance, that of T eneriffe— shines with a vitreousglitter ; the cleavage of the rock i s clean and sharp.

Soni c les s degree of fluidity in th e current of lava g ives it

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PR O DUCT S O F VO LCA N O E S .

G iant’s Causeway . I nS cotland, th e beautiful cave of the I sle ofS tatfa, h ollowed out by th e act ion of th ewaves between two rangesof basalt ic s ha fts , is celebratedas th e work of F ingal , the dem igod

. I n the S ic i lian S ea, th e F aragl i on i I sles , or I s les of theCyclopes , s ituated not far from Catania , at th e base of E tna , arelookedupon by tradi tion as th e rocks cast by P ol yphemus on thesh ips of U l y s ses and h is compan ions . M any of these prism s arefrom 100 to 160 feet h igh

,and are not les s than from s ix to six

teen feet in thi cknes s .

N ear F air H eadand th e G iant’s Causeway some of th e shaftsconnectedw it h th e perpendicular cl i ff of th e headland are nearly400 feet in heigh t . I nth e I sle of S kye, some of the columns,accord ing to M ’

Culloch ’s statement

,are still higher . O n the

other h and,thereare also colonnades in miniature, each shaft of

wh i ch i s not more than three quarters of an inch to an inch fromth e summ i t to th ebase instances of theseare found inth ebasaltsof th e h ill of M orven in S cotland .

B E D S O F L A V A A R R A N G E D I N CO L U M N S .

S ome geologists h ave t houg h t that bas altic columns couldnotbe formedexcept under the pres sure of enormous m asses of

water ; but a comparative study of these rocks indifferent partsof th e world has proved th at several beds of lava are arranged incolumns at heights cons iderably above the level of the sea. Inth is colonnade-l ike format i on of lava there is , however, no phenomenon wh i ch i s entirely peculiar to basalt. T rachyte

,also

,

somet i mes as sumes th is form,and M . F ouqué has discovered a

magnificent ins tance of it in th e islandof M ilo, in which there isa cl iff composedof prismatic s h afts 320 feet in height.

M asses of mud when dried in th e sun,th e alluvium of rivers ,

beds of clay or tu fa , and, in general, all m atter wh ich , in ”

conse

quenceof th e loss of its moisture, pas ses from a pasty to a solidstate, ei ther in a state of nature or in our manufactories anddwell ings , likewise as sume a columnar s tructure S im ilar to th atof the basaltic lava . I n fact

,th e entire mass

,when gradually

los ing the moisture which swelled out its substance, can not con

PR O DUCT S O F V O L CA N O E S . 289

tract so as to shift the position of all its particles toward the

centre ; certain points remain fixed, and round each of these thecontraction of a portion of the mass takes place .

Inbasalt,in particular

,it is the lower layer which assumes the

columnar structure,for these alone cool gently enough to allow

the phenomena of contraction to follow the normal course . T he

highest portion of the mass,being deprived

,immediately after its

issue from the earth, of the caloric and the steam which filled itspores

,is almost immediately transformed into a more or less

rough and cracked m ass . But this very crust protects the res t ofthe lava against any radiation

,and serves as a covering to the

sem i-crystalline columns wh ich , by the continual contraction of

their particles,are s lowly separated from the rest of the mass .

A F O R E S T O F P R I S M S .

W hen a section of a bed of basaltic lava has been laid bare bythe water of a river, thewaves of the ocean

,or earthquake

,the

rough stones of the top layers may be seen ly ing,with or without

any gradual trans ition,on a forest of prisms

, sometimes rudim entary in their shape , but often no less regular in their shapethan i f they h ad been carved out by the hand of man . M ost areof a hexagonal form ; others , which were probably subject to lessfavorable conditions

,have four

,five or seven faces ; but all are

definitely separated from one another by their particles gatheringround th e central axis .

M r. Poulett S crope describes a fact which proves the enormouspower of th is contractile force . T he colonnade of Burzet inV ivarais

,contains numerous nodules of olivine

,man y of which

are as large as aman ’s fist : and

,in spite of their extreme hard

ness,have been divided into two pieces

,each fixed in one of two

adj acent columns . A lthough the two corresponding surfaces havebeen polished by the infiltration of water

,it i s imposs ible to doubt

t h at the two separate portions were not once j oined in the samenodule .

A s natural ph ilosophers have verified by experiments on

various v iscous substances,basaltic shafts are always formed per

990 PR O DUCT S O F V O L CA NO “ .

pendicularly to the surface of refrigeration . N ow, this surfacebeing inclined, according to the locality , in a diversity of ways ,the result is , that the columns may assume a great variety of

direction in their position . A lthough most of them are vertical ,on account of the cooling taking place in an upward direction ,others

,as at S t. H elena

,take a horizontal direction, and resemble

trunks of trees heaped upon a wood-pile .

In oth er places , as at the Coupe d’A yzac in A uvergne, thecolumns of a denuded cliff are arranged in the form of a fan, so

as to lean regularly on the wall of the cliff as well as on theground of the valley . A t S amoskcfi ,

in H ungary , a sheet of

columnar basalt, very small at its origin , spreads out from thetop of a rock like the water of a cascade, and hangs suspendedover a precipice , resembling a cupola which has lost its base .

E lsewhere masses of basaltic pillars radiate inevery direction likethe weapons in an immense trophy of arms .

L I K E G I G A N T I C B A M B O O S .

An exact prismatic form ,is not

,however

,the only shape

as sumed by the cooling lava . T he phenomenon of contractiontakes place in different ways , according to the nature of theerupted matter, the declivity of the slopes

,and all the other sur

rounding circumstances . T hus,in consequence of the sinking of

the rock,most basaltic prisms exh ibit at intervals a kind of j oint

,

wh ich gives the columns a kind of resemblance to gigantic bamboos . Insom e lavas these j oints are sonumerous

,and the edges

of the stone are so eaten away by th eweather, that the shafts areconverted into piles of spheroids of amore or less regular form .

A t the volcano of Bertrich,in the E ifel , one might fancy

them a h eap of cheeses ; wh ence comes the name of “Cheese

Cave ,” which is given to one of the caverns which opens in theflow of the lava . S ometimes

,too

,crystals scattered about in the

midst of the mass have served as nuclei to globular concretionsformed of numerous concentri c layers . L astly , many currents ofm olten matter present a tabular or schistose structure

,caused

,

like that of slate , by thepressure of the superincumbent masses .

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292 PR O DUCT S O F V O LCA N O E S .

San S alvador, is al so one of th e most curious on account of itsregulari ty . I ts first break ing out was not i ced on th e 29th of M arch,1783, and

s ince t h i s date it has almost alway s cont inued to increasein s i ze by t hrowing outs ide its cavi ty ashes ands tones . S ome ofits erupt ions , remarkable for t heir comparative violence, havebeenaccompaniedby flows of lava but

,generally , th e crater of I salco

confines i tself to hurling burning matter to a height of 39 to 46feet above its crater ; explos ions follow one another at intervals ofevery two m inutes . T h e total elevation of the cone of debris aboveth e v i llage of I salco being 735 feet , and th e s lope of the s ide of

th e mas s being, on th e average, 35 degrees , M . von S eebach , oneof th e observers of th e volcano, has been able to calculateapprox imately th e bulk andregular increase of the mountain . In 1865

th e mass of debris was about of cubic yards , giving anincrease of about cubic yards every year, or 56cubic y ardsevery h our. T he volcano

,therefore

,m igh t be looked upon as a

gigant i c hour-glass .

W O R L D -R E N O W N E D CR A T E R .

O f all th e craters inth e world, th eone wh ich most astonishesthose who contemplate it is th e crater of K ilauea, in th e islandofH awai i . T h is volcani c outlet opens at more than 3900 feet ofelevat ion on th e s ides of th e great mountain of M auna-L oa, whichis itsel f crowned by a magnifi cent funnel-shaped crater 2735 yardsacross from onebrink to th e other . T heelliptical crater of K ilaueais no less than th reem iles in length and seven m iles in c i rcum ference. T h e h ollow of this aby ss is filled by a lake of l ava

,th e

level of which varies from year to year,sometimes ris ing and

sometimes falling like water in a well .In a general way , it lies about 600 to 900 feet below the outer

edge, and, in order to s tudy its details,it i s neces sary to get on

to a ledgeof black l ava wh ich extends roundth e whole circum ~

ference of th e gulf ; this is th e solidified edge of a former sheetof molten matter

, sim ilar to those circular benches of ice which ,

in nort hern countries,border the banks of a lake

,and even in

spring stillmark the level th e water has sunk from . T he surface

PR O DUCT S O F V0LCAN O E S . 293

of the sea of fire i s generally covered by athick crust over itswhole extent ; here and there the redlava-waves spring up l ike thewater of a lake through the broken ice . Jets of vapor whistleand hiss as they escape, darting out showers of burning scoria,and forming cones of ashes on th e crust 60 to 100 feet in height,which are so m any volcanoes in m iniature.

I ntense heat radiates from th e imm ense crater,and a kind of

hot blast makes its way through all the chinks in th e verticalwalls of the s ides . In the m idst of th e hot vapors

,one feels as

if lost in a vast furnace . During the night time an observermight fancy himself surrounded with flames th e atmospherei tsel f, colored by th eredreflection of th e vent holes of thevolcano,s eems to be all on fire.

R U S H E S T H R O U G H T H E O P E N I N G .

T he level or th e fire lake of K ilauea i s inces santl y changing.

Inproportion as fresh l ava issues forth from th e subterraneanfurnace

,the broken crus t affords an outlet to other sheets of

m olten matter and fresh heaps of s coria,and gradually th e boil

ing mass rises from ledge to ledge,and ultimatel y reaches th e

upper edge of the bas in . S ooner or later, however, the levelrap idl y s inks . T he fact is

,that th e burning mass contained in

the depths of the aby s s graduall y m elts th e lower walls of solidlava ; these walls ultimately give way at some weak points intheir circum ference

,a crevice is produced in the outer face of th e

volcano,and th e liquid matter

,

‘ drawn off like wine from a vat,

ush es through the opening made for it.T heflow increases the orifi ce by the action of its weight on

th e sill of the opening,and by melting th e rocks which oppose its

passage,and then

,runn ing down over th e slopes

,flows into the

sea,form ing promontories on th e shore. I n 1840 the crater was

full to th e brink,when a crack suddenly opened in the s ide of the

mountain . T h is fissure extended to a distance of 131 feet fromits starting-point

,and vom ited forth a stream of lava 37 miles

long and 16 m iles wide,which entirely altered the outline of th e

sea-coast, anddestroy ed all th e fish in the adj acent waters . Mr.

294 m overs or vow A Noss

Dana estim atedthe total m ass of th is enormous flow as equal on

cubic yards— that is, to asolid body fifty times as greatas the quantit y of earth dug out incutting through the I sthmusof S uez.

T he enormous bas in of K ilauea, 1476 feet deep, remainedentirely empty for some time , and the former lake of lavaleft noother trace of its exis tence than a solid ledge l ike thosewhichhadbeen formed at th e time of previous er uptions . S ince thisdate th e great cauldron of l ava has been several times filledandseveral t imes emptied, either altogether or in part.

O U T L E T F O R O V E R F L O W .

A lmost all the volcanoes which rise to a great height,get rid

,like K ilauea, of their overflow of lava through fissures

wh ich open in their s ide walls . I n fact, the column of m oltenm atter w h ich the pressure of th e gas beneath raises in thepipe of the crater is of an enormous weight, and every inchit ascends toward the m outh of the crater represents an expense offorce which seems prodigious . T he more or less hypotheticalcalculations which have beenmadeas to the degree of pressurenecessary for the steam to be able to act on the lava-furnace leadto the belief that the outlet-conduits of volcanoes, and couse

quently th e m ass of liquid s tone to be l ifted, are not les s th annine m iles in depth . V arious geologists— among others S artoriusvon W altershausen, the great explorer of E tna— believe that thevolcano-sh afts are of a still more cons iderable depth . T he rocksof the terrestrial surface, limestone, granite, quartz , or mica, areof a specific gravit y two and a half times superior to that of water

,

while th eplanet itself, take n as a whole, weighs nearly five and ahalf times as much as th e same m ass of distilled water; the dens ityof the interior layers must therefore increase from th e circumference to th e center. W ith regard to the proportion of thisincrease, it i s established by a calculation, the whole responsi ‘bility of which must rest upon its authors . Baron VValtershausenhas ascertained, by means of a great number of weigh ings , that thelavaof E tna and thatof I celand havea. specificg ravity of

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296 PR O DUCT S O F V O L CA N O E S .

A t the source itself th e lava i s altogether fluid, and flows withcons iderable speed— sometimes , oil steep slopes , faster th an ahorsecangallop; but th e courseof th e molten s tone soon slackens ,

and the liquid, h itherto dazzl ing wit h its l igh t, i s covered bybrown or red s coria, like those of iron just come out of afurnace . T hese scoria come together, and, combining, soonleave no intersti ces between them beyond narrow vent-holes ,through wh ich the molten matter escapes . T he scoria then forma crus t

,wh ich is inces santl y breaking w i th a metallic noise, but

gradually consolidates into a perfect tunnel round th e ri ver offire ; th is i s the chei re, thus named on account of th e asperitieswhich bris tle on its surface.

S T A N D I N G O N A T H I N S U R F A CE .

Any onemay s afely ventureon th earch-shaped crust, althoughonly a few inches above th emass in s tate of fus ion, without anyfear of being burnt, j ust as in winter we trust oursel ves on th esheets of ice wh ich cover a running stream . T he pressureof th elava succeeds in breaking throug h its shell onl y at the lowerparts of its flow

,in spots where th ewaves of burning s tone fall

with all th eir weig h t . T hen th e envelope i s suddenly rupturedand the mas s springs out likewater from a sluice, pushing beforei t th e resounding scoria

,and swelling out gentl y in the form of

an enormous blister ; it then again becomes covered w ith a solidcrus t

,wh ich i s again broken through by a fresh effort of th e

lava .

T hus th e river, surrounding itself wit h dikes , w h ich it con

stantly break s through ,gradually des cends over th eslopes , terribleandinexorable

,so long as th e original stream does not cease to

flow. T he only means of diverting th e current is to modify theincl ine in front of it

,either by oppos ing obs tacles to it to throw it

to ei ther s ide,or by preparing a road for it by digg ing deep

t renches, or by opening up above s ome lateral outlet for th e

pent-up lava . In 1669, at th e time of th e great eruption wh ichthreatened to swallow up Catania, all these various means wereadoptedinorder to save th e town . O n one s ide the inhabitants

PR O DUCT S O F V O LCA N O E S . 297

worked at consolidating the rampart, andplaced obstacles acro s

th e path of the current to turn it toward the south .

O ther workmen, furnished with shovels andmattocks , as cendedalong the edge of the flow

,and

,in spite of the res istance offered

by t h e peas ants, tried to pierce th rouh the shell of s coria, and thus ,by tapping th e stream

,to open fresh outlets forth emolten matter .

T hese m eans of defense partl y succeeded, and th e terrible currentwhich

,at its source near N icolosi, had been able to melt and pierce

through th e volcani c cone of Monpilieri at its thickest point(this cone standing in its path)was turned from its coursetoward th e centre of Catania

,and destroyed noth ing but the

suburbs .

T h e radiation from th e lava being arres ted by the crust ofscoria

,which i s a verybadconductor of heat, th e temperatureof the

air surrounding aflow of l ava rises but very sl ightl y . T heN eapolitanguides have no fear in approaching the V esuvian lava in order tos tamp the rough medals made of it, wh ich they sell to foreigners .

A t a distance of a few yards from the vent-holes in th e cheire thetrees of E tna cont inue to grow and blossom

,and some clumps

,

indeed,may beseen flouris h ing on an islet of vegetable earth ly ing

between two branches of a flow of burning lava . And yet, by acontrast wh ich at first s ight seem s incom prehensible, it sometimesh appens that trees wh ich are distant from any vis ible flow ofmolten matter suddenly wither and die.

V I N E YA R D S B L I G H T E D .

T hus,in 1852, at the time of th e great eruption from the

V al del Bove,on th e eas tern slopes of M ount E tna, vineyards

and vines,covering a cons iderable area

,and s ituated at a distance

of more than hal f a m ile below th e front of th e flow,were sud

denly dried up, j ust as i f th e blast of a fire had burnt up theirfoliage . Inorder to explain this curious phenomena, it i s necessary to adm it th at some rivulets of the great lava river must havepenetrated under theearth through the fissures of the soil

,and

have filled up a subterranean cavity in th e mountain exactlybelow the vineyards that were destroyed ; th e roots being cou~

298 PR O DUCTS O F V O LCA N O E S .

sumed

,or depri ved of the necessary moisture, the trees th em

selves could notdo otherwi se than perish .

O n lofty mountains in a s t ate of eruption , th e masses of

snow and ice, wh ich are covered by th e fiery currents which issuefrom the volcanic fissures , do not alway s melt, and somehavebeenpreserved under th e s coria for centuries , or even thousands of

years . L yell h as d is covered them under the l ava of E tna ,A merican geologi sts under the masses thrown

' out by th e crater ofM ount H ooker, Darwin under th e ashes in Deception I sland, inth e T erra del F uego, M . P h il ippi under the flows of th e volcanoN uevo deCh illan, which in 1861 erupted throug h a glacier.

T here every bed of snow which falls during the winterremains perfect under the coat of burning dust wh ich i s ejectedfrom th e outlet of eruption, and sections made through the massof debris show for a g reat depth th e alternate black and whitestrataof th evolcanic as hes and th e snow . In 1860 the crater ofth emountain of Kutlagaya, in I celand, hurled out s imultaneousl yinto the air lumps of lava and pieces of ice all intermingledtogether.

B U R I E D L A V A S T I L L B U R N I N G .

In like manner, the imm ense flows of lava in I celand haveleft in aperfect s tateof preservation the trunks of the S equoias .

and other A merican trees,which adorned the surface of the i sland

during the ages of the T ertiary epoch,at a time when the mean

temperature of th is country was 48 ° (F that i s, 42

° to 44°above that which it is at present. A lthough th e radiation fromthe lava is so slight that it neither melts th e ice nor burns thetrunks of buried trees

, yet, on th eother h and, the heat and fluidityof the lavaare maintained in the central part of the flow foravery considerable number of years . T ravelers s tate that theyh ave found deepl y buri edlava wh ich was still burning after it hadremained fora century on the mountain s ide.

A lth ough the lavacovers up and often preserves the snowandthe ice, which are doubtless defended against th e heat by acush ion of spheroidal particles of hum idity

,i t immediatel y con

verts into stem the water with which it comes incontact. T he

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300 P R O DUCT S O F V O L CA N O E S .

cleaves in two the ground of I celand , was doubtless filled up withlava along its entire length, for h illocks of eruption sprung uponvarious points of th is straight line .

I t has been calculated that the whole of the lava evacuatedby the S kaptar in this great eruption was not less in bulk than

millions of cubic yards , a m ass equivalent to the wholevolume of M ont B lanc ; it would be a quantity sufficient to coverthe wholeearth with a film of lava inches in thickness . A s

to the celebrated flow from the M onti R ossi,which threatened to

destroy Catania, in 1669 , it seems very trifling in comparison ; itcontained a m ass of m olten stone which was estimated at 1310

millions of cubic yards . O n how trifling a scale,therefore

,are

these ordinary eruptions compared with the surface of the globeT hey are, however, phenomena perceptible enough to man, in allh is infinite littleness .

CH A PT E R XX I I

V O L CA N I C PaojucrI L E s .-E X P L O S I O N S or A S H E S .

— S U B O R D I N A T E

V O L CA N O E S — M O U N T A I N S R E DU CE D T o DU S T .—F L A S H E S

A N D F L A M E S P R O CE F T ‘

I N G F R O M V O L CA N O E S .

TH E lava swelling up in enormous blisters above the fissuresfrom which it flows in a current over th e slopes is far from

being the only substance ejected from volcanic mountains . W henthe pent-up vapor e scapes from th e crater with asudden explosion

,

it carries with it lumps of molten m atter,which describe their

curve in the air, and fall at agreater or less distance onthe slopeof the cone, according to the force with which they were ejected .

T h ese are the vol can ic projectiles , th e immense showers ofwhich

,traced in lines of fire on the dark sky , contribute so much

during th e night time to th e m agn ificent beauty of volcaniccruptions . T hese projectiles have already become partiall y cooled bytheir radiation inthe air

,andwh en they fall are already solidified

on the outside, but the inside nucleus rem ains for a long timein a liquid or pasty s tate. T he form of these projectiles i s oftenof an almost perfect regularity .

E ach sphere i s in this case composed of a series of concentricenvelopes

,which have evidentl y been arranged in the order of their

specific gravity during the flight of the proj ectile through the air.T he dimensions of these projectiles vary in each eruption; someof them are one or more yards in thickness others are nothingbut m ere grains of sand, and are carried by the wind to greatdistances .

I n most eruptions,these balls of l ava

,s till in a fluid and

burning state, constitute but a small part of the matter thrownout by the mountain . T helargest proportion of the stone ej ected

the walls of the volcano itsel f, which break up under,

.and fly off in volley s, m ingled w ith theuptiou.

’

T his is th e origin of the dust or301

302 vom xcm ac-rim

ashes which somecraters vomitout insuch largequantities, wh ichtoo

,are the causes of such terrible disasters .

W hen the impetus of the gas confines itself to forming afissure in the s ide of the mountain, the fragments of rocks wh ichare broken up and reduced to powder arecom pratively small inquantity

. T hey are proj ected in clouds out of th e fis sure, and,falling like hail round th e orifice, are graduall y heaped up in theform of a cone on the sideof the mountainfrom which they arose .

In E urope, the enormous circumference of E tna presents morethan 700 of these subordinate volcanoes, some scarcely higher thanan E squimaux hut

,and others, l ike the M onti R oss i, M onte

M inardo,M onte I lici, several hundred yards high, and more than

half a mile wide at th e base.

S CA N T Y G R O W T H O F B R O O M .

T here are some which are entirely s terile, or covered only bya scanty vegetat i on of broom

,and are marked out by a red

,yellow

,

or even black color on the m ain body of E tna those s ituated onthe lower slopes are covered with trees or planted with vines

,and

sometimes contain admirable crops inthe very cavity on their summ it . T hese cones of ashes

,springing up like a progen y on the

vast sides of their mother mountain,give to E tna a s ingular

appearance of vital personality and of creative energ y . T he samephenomenon occurs on the volcanoes of H awaii, which carry ontheir declivities thousands of subordinate cones .

Inthe formation of these hillocks a real divis ion of labor takesplace. T he rocks andheavier stones fall either on the edge of thecrater or in the gul f itsel f . T heashes and light dus t are shot upto a much greater heigh t

,and

,hurried along by the impul se of

thewind, fall far and wide, like the chafi'

of corn winnowed in athreshing-door. T hus the s lope of thecone toward which the winddirects the ashes i s always more elongated

,andrises to a greater

h eight on the edge of the crater. O nE tna, where the wind generally blows inthe direction of west to eas t, the eas tern slope ofthe hillocks is more developed thanon theoppos ite s ide. I tmust

,

perhaps , be attributedto th e action of the wind blowing on the

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304 V O LCAN I C PR O JE CT I L E S .

vius at th e time of several great eruptions , and it has been somet imes foundthat it reached2 to feet ; th at i s , s ix timesh igh er th an th e summ it of th e volcano i tself .

O neof these explos i ons of entire summ its wh i ch causedmos tterror in modern times was th at of the volcano of Coseguina, ah illock of about 500 feet h igh , s ituated on a promontory to th esouth of the Bay of F onseca, in Central A merica . T h e debrishurledinto th e air spread over the sky in a horrible arc h severalhundreds of m iles in width , andcoveredth e plains for a distanceof 25 m iles with a layer of dust at least 16 feet th ick. A t th e

very foot of th e h ill th e h eadlandadvanced 787 feet into th e bay ,and two new i slands , formedof ashes and s tones falling from thevolcano

,rose i n th e m ids t of th e water several m iles away .

P U M I C E -S T O N E O N T H E W A T E R .

Beyondth e distri cts close roundth e crater, th e bed of dust,

wh ich fell gradually , became thinner, but it was carried by th ewindmore th an forty degrees of longitude toward th e west

,and

th e sh ips sailing in those waters penetrated with difficulty th elayer of pum ice-s tone spread out on the sea. T o th e north

,th e

rain of as hes was remarked at T ruxillo, H onduras , and at Ch iapas ,in Mexi co on the south

,it reachedCarthagena

, S anta M arth a ,and other towns of th e coast of G renada to th eeast

,being carried

by the counter current of th e trade-winds,it fell on th e plains of

S t. A nn’s,in Jamaica

,at a distance of 800 m iles . T he area of

land andwater on wh ich th e dust des cended mus t be es timatedatsquare m iles

,andth e mas s of matter vom ited out could

not be les s th an m illion cubic yards .

T he uproar of th e breaking up of th emountain was heard asfaras the h igh plateaux of Bogota

, s ituated 1025 m iles away in as traigh t line . W hile th e form idable cloud was settling downroundth e volcano, thick darkness filled the air. F or forty-th reehours noth ing couldbe seen except by th e s inister ligh t of th eflashes darting from the columns of s team

,and th e red g lare of

the vent holes opening in th emountain .

T oescape from this prolonged nigh t,the rain of ashes

,and

V O L CA N IC PR O JE CT I L E S . 05

the burning atmosphere, th e inhabitants who dwelt at th e foot ofCoseguina fledin all haste along a road running by th e blackwater of th e Bay of F onseca . M en

,women

,children

,and domes

tic animals travelled pain fully along a difficult path , throughquagm ires and marshes . S o great, it i s s aid

,was th e terror of all

animated beings during this long nigh t of horror, that th e animals

,th em selves

,such as monkey s , serpents, and birds , j oined th e

bandof fugitives,as i f they recognized in man a being endowed with

intelligence superior to their own .

A large num ber of volcanoes have dim inished in height,or

have,indeed

,entirel y disappeared, in consequence of explos ions ,

which reduced their rocks to powder, and distributed them in thicksheets on the ground adjacent . M ount B aker

,in California

,and

th eJapanese volcano of U nsen, have thus rai sed th e level of th esurrounding plains at th e expense of a dim inution in their ownvolume. In 1638, thesumm it of th e peak of T imor, wh ich migh tbe seen like a light-house from a distance of 270 m iles , exploded,and blew up into th e air

,and the water collecting

,form ed a lake

in th eenormous voidcausedby th e explosion .

G R E A T D E S T R U CT I O N O F L I F E .

In 18 15, T imboro, avolcano in th e island of S umbara den

stroyed morem enthan th e artillery of both of th e'arm ies engagedon th e battle-field of W aterloo . In th e island of S umatra, 550m iles to th e west

,the terrible explos ion was heard

,and

,for a

radius of 300 m iles round th emountain, a thick cloud of ashes,

wh ich obs cured th e sun,made it dark like night even at noonday .

T his immense quantity of debris,the whole mass of which was, it

is said, equivalent to th rice th e bulk of M ont B lanc, fell over anarea larger than th at of G ermany .

T h e pum ice-s tone wh ich floated in th e sea was more than ayardin th ickness and it was with somedifli culty that ships couldmake theirway through it . T h epopular imagination was sodeeply

th is catacl ysm,that at B runi

,in the island of

er heaps of the dust vom ited out by T imboro,

carried by th e wind,they

204 m .

306VO LCA N IC PR O JE CT I L E S .

datetheir years from “ the great fall of ashes . I t is th e com !

m encement of an era for the inhabitants of B runi, just as th eflight of M ohammed was for the M ussulm ans .

T he friction of the s team against the innumerable particlesof solid m atter wh ich are darted out into th e air is the principalcauseof the electri city wh ich is developed so plentifully duringmost volcanic eruptions . In consequence of th is fri ction, whichoperates s imultaneousl y at all points in the atmosphere whichare reached by th e volcanic as h es

,and vapor, sparks flash out

which are developed into ligh tning. T he skies are lighted up

not only by the reflection from the lava, but also by coruscationsof light wh ich dart from am id th e clouds .

W hen th e vast canopy of vapor spreads over the summit ofthe mountains

,numerous spirals of fire wh irl round on each site

of the clouds , wh ich , as they unroll, resemble the foliage of a

gigantic tree

. Doubtless , also, th e encounter of two aerial currents may contribute to produce lightn ing in the columns of

vapor ; yet, when the latter are s lightl y mingled with ashes, theyarerarely stormy .

A CT U A L F I R E S S E E N .

A lthough the evolutionof electricity in th e columns of vaporand ashes vomited out by volcanoes has never been called inquestion

,the appearanceof actual flames at the time of volcanic

eruptions was for a long time disputed . M . S artorius von W altershausen, the patient observer of E tna, has maintained thatneither th is m ountain, nor S tromboli, nor any other volcano, hasever presented among its phenomena any fire properly so called,andthat the supposed flames were nothing more than the reflectionof the red or white lava th at was boiling inthe crater .

O nthe other hand, E lie de Beaumont, Abich and P illa pos itively as sert that they have seen light flames on the summit ofV esuvius andE tna. I t would

,however

,be very natural to believe

that inflam mable gases might be liberated andtake fire at theoutlet of th ose im mense s h a fts which place the great subterraneanlaboratory of lava incommunication with the outer air.

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308VO LCAN IC 91201130 e

ble which history has to relate . By means of thesesudden deluges,towns have been swept away or swallowedup, whole distri cts dottedover wi th habitations have been flooded wi t h mud or convertedinto marshes , andth e entire face of nature has been changed inth e space of a few h ours .

T he liquid mas ses wh ich des cend rapidl y from themountai nheigh t do not alway s proceed from th e volcano itsel f. T hus thelocal delugemay be causedby a rapid condensation of l arge quantities of steam wh i ch escape from the crater andfall in torrents onthe s lopes . A phenomenon of th is kind must evidentl y take

place in a great many cases , and it was doubtles s by a cataclysmof th is kindthat the town of H erculaneum , at the foot of V esuvius ,was buried .

M E L T E D S N O W A N D I CE .

A s regards the lofty snow-clad volcanoes of the tropical andtemperate zones , andalso those of the frozen regions , th e torrentsof water and debris— th e water-lava

,

”as th e S icilians call them

— may be explained by the rapid melting of immense masses ofsnow and ice, with wh ich the burning l ava, th e hot ashes , or thegaseous emanations of the volcan ic furnace have come in contact.T hus

,in I celand

,after each eruption

,form idable deluges , carry

ing with them ice, scoria, and rocks, suddenly rush down into thevalleys

,sweeping away every thing in their course.

T hese liquid avalanches are the most terrible phenomenawh ich the inhabitants of th e i sland have to dread. T hey sh owthree headlands formed of debris

,which th ebody of water descend

ng from th e s ides of Kutlugayain 1766 threw out farinto the sea,in adepth of 246 feet of water.

O ther deluges no less formidable are caused by the ruptureof the walls which penback a lake in the cavity of a form er crater

, or by the formation of a fissure which afl'

ords an outlet toliquid masses contained in subterranean reservoirs . I t would betoo diflicult to explain otherwise the mud-eruptions of severaltrachytic volcanoes of the A ndes— I mbambaru

, Cotopaxi, andCarahuarizo. In fact, the mud which comes down from these

V O L CA N IC PR O JE CT I L E S . 309

mountains often contains a large quantity of organized beings,

aquatic plants,infusoria

,and even fish

,which could only have

lived in th e calm waters of the lake .

O f this kind is the Pim elodes cyclopum ,a little fish of the

tribe of the S ilurda, which , according to H umboldt, has hithertobeen found nowhere except in the A ndini caverns and in the rivulets of the plateau of Quito . In 169 1 the volcano of I mbambaruvomited out

,in combination w ith mud and snow

,so large a quan

tity of these remains of organisms that the air was contaminatedby them

,and m iasmatic fevers prevailed in all the country round .

T he masses of water which thus rush down suddenly into theplains amount sometimes to m illions

,or even thousands of millions

of cubic yards .

U N D E R G R O U N D L A K E S .

A lthough,in some cases

,these eruptions of mud and water

may be looked upon as accidental phenomena,they must

,on the

contrary,as regards many volcanoes

,be considered as the result

of the normal action of the subterranean forces . T hey are,then

,

the waters of the seaor of lakes which,having been buried in the

earth,again make their appearance on the surface

,m ingled with

rocks which they have dissolved or reduced to a pasty state .

A remarkable instance of these liquid eruptions is that presented by Papandayang ,

one of the most active volcanoes in Java .

In 1792 this mountain burst, the summit was converted into dustand disappeared

,and the debris

,spreading far and wide

,buried

forty villages . S ince this epoch a copious rivulet gushes out in thevery mouth of the crater

,at a height of 7710 feet, and runs down

into the plain,leaping over the blocks of trachyte . R ound the spring

pools of water fill all the clefts in the rocks,and boil up inces

santly under the action of the hot vapors which rise in bubblesh ere and there are funnel-shaped cavities , in which black andmuddy water constantl y ascends and sinks with the same regularity as the waves of the sea; elsewhere muddy masses slowlyissuing from sm all craters '

flow in circular slopes over mounds ofa few inches -or a yard in height ; lastly , j ets of steam dart out of

810 V O L CA N IC PR O JE CT I L E S .

all the fissures with a shrill noise, m aking the ground tremblewith the shock.

A ll these various noises , th e roaring of th e cascades the explosionof the gaseous springs

,the hoarse murmur of the mud

volcanoes,the shrill h iss ing of the fumaroles , produce an inde

scribable uproar, which is audible far away in the plains , which,too

,has given to the volcano its name of Papandayang , or F orge,”

as i f one could incessantly hear the m ighty blas t of the flames andtheever-recurring beating of theanvils .

In volcanoes of a great height it is rarely found that eruptions of water and mud are constant, as in the Papandayang ; buttemporary ejections of liquid masses are frequent

,and there are

,

indeed,some volcanoes which vom it out nothing but muddy matter.

T he volcano of A qua (or water), the cone of which is gently inclinedlike that of E tna, and rises to about feet in height

,

into the regions of snow,has never vomited anything but water ;

and it is,indeed

,stated that lava and other volcanic products are

entirely wanting on its slopes .

I N H A B I T A N T S D R I V E N O U T .

Yet in 1541 , this prodigious intermittent spring hurled intothe air its terminal point and poured over the plains at its base

,

and over the town of G uatemala,so large a quantity of water

,

mingled with stones and debris,that the inhabitants were com

pelled to fly with the greatest haste, and to reconstruct theircapital at the foot of the volcano of Fnego . T his new neighbor

,

however, showed that he was as much or more to be dreaded thantheir former one, for the violent eruptions from the mountaincompelled the inhabitants of the second town to again migrateand to rebuild their capital at a point twenty miles to the northwest .

S everal volcanoes in Java and the Philippines also give ventduring their eruptions , to large quantities of mud

, sometimesm ingled with organic matter in such considerable proportions thatthey have beenutilized for fuel . In 1793, a few months after theterrible eruption of Unsen

, in the island of K iousiou,anadj acent

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312 V O LCA N IC PR O JE CT I L E S .

formations , there are but few wh ich exhibit amore astonishingdivers i ty than the tufas . T hey di ffer entirely in appearance andph y s ical qualit ies , according to the nature of the m aterials whichhave formed them ,

th e quantity of water wh ich has cementedthem

,th e greater or les s rapidity with whi ch their fall and des i

cat ion take place ; las tly , the number and distribution of th e

ch inks wh i ch are produced acros s the dried mas s , and have beenfilledup wi th th e mos t di fferent substances . M any kinds of tufaresemble the mos t beauti ful m arble.

L I T T L E CO N E S .

T he small h illocks , wh ich are specially called mud-volcanoes ,or salses

,on account of th e s alts wh ich are frequentl y depos ited

by their waters,are cones wh ich di ffer only in their dimensions

from th e m igh ty volcanoes of Java or th e A ndes . L ike thesegreat mountains

,th ey sh ake th e ground, and rend it, in order to

di scharge t heir pent-up matter ; they em it gas and s team inabundance

,add to their slopes by their own debris

,shift their

places,change thei r craters

,throw off their summ its in their

explos ions lastl y,some of these salses are incessantly at work

,

wh ile others h ave periods of repose and activity . In nature,

trans it ions mergeinto one another so perfectly , that it is difficult todiscover any essential difference between a volcano and a s alse,and between the latter and a thermal spring .

Mud-volcanoes exis t in cons iderable numbers on the surfaceof the earth, and, like the volcanoes of lava, the neighborhood ofthe sea-coas t is the principal locality where we find theirlittlecones . InE urope, themost remarkable are those which are s ituated at the twoextrem ities of the Caucasus on the coasts of theCaspian S ea, and on both s ides of the S traits of Yenikale

,which

connect the S ea of A zof with the Black S ea. O n the east,the

mud-springs of Bakou are especiall y distinguished by their combination with inflamm able gases ; on th e west

,those of T aman

and K ertch flow all the year round,but especiall y during tim es

u I drought, pouring out large quantities of blackish mud . O nes f th esemud-volcanoes, the Gorela, or Kuku-O ba, which, in the

V O LCA N I C PR O JEcrrLas . 313

time of P allas,was called th e H ell

,

” or Prekla,on account of its

frequent eruptions,i s no less th an 246 feet in heigh t, and from

this crater,which i s perfectl y dis tinct

,muddy stream s haveflowed

one of wh ich was 2624 feet long, and contained aboutcubic yards .

T hevolcanitos of T urbaco, describedby H umboldt,and th e

maccalube of G irgenti,which havebeen explored

, s ince Dolom ieu,by most E uropean savants who have devoted them selves to thestudy of subterranean forces

,are also well-known exam ples or

mud-springs,and may serve as a type to all the hillocks of the

sam e character. I nwinter,after a long course of rains

,the plain

is a surface of mud and water form ing a kind of boiling pas te,

from which steam m akes its escape with a wh istling noise ; butth e warmth of S pring and summer hardens this cl ay into a thickcrus t

,which the steam breaks through at various points and

covers with increas ing hillocks . A t the apex of these cones abubble of gas swells up the mudl ike a blister, and then bursts it,the sem i-l iquid flowing in a thin coat over th emound ; then afreshbubble ej ects more mud, w h ich spreads over th efirs t la yer alreadybecome hard

,and this action continues incessantl y until the rains

of winter again wash away all th e cones .

D E P E N D E N T O N T H E T I D E S .

T his is th e ordinary course of action of the salse, sometimes

interruptedby violent eruptions . O nthe coas t of M ekranthemud-volcanoes are not only subj ect to th e action of the seasons ,but also depend on th e action of the tides

,although many of them

are from 9 to 1 2 m iles from th e I ndian O cean . A t the timeof theflow the mud rises in great bubbles , accompaniedby a hoarse m urcmur

,like the distant roar of th under . T h e highest cone is not

more than 246 feet high , and stands seven m iles from the shore .

In a general way,the expul sion of mud andgas i s accom

paniedby a discharge of heat, but in some salses,like those of

Mekran, the matter ej ected is not higher in temperature than thesurrounding air

,as i f theexpulsion of th e mud from the ground

was an entirel y superficial phenomenon . O ccas ionall y , in peat

814 VO LCAN IC PR OJECT I Lm

bogs,the ground cracks and coldmudi s ej ectedfrom thefissure;

andthen,after th is kind of eruption, the spongy soil s inks and

again levels down . I s th is eruptive phenomenon s im ilar to thatpresented by th e mud volcanoes , and caused by the ferm entationof gases in the m idst of substances in a s tate of putrefaction ?T his i s M . O tto V olger’s idea ; and it would be difficult to giveany other explanationof thephenomenon.

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316 VO LCAN IC T H E R MA L S PR I N G S .

ravine,filledwith vapor ris ing in eddies , opens on th e s ide of a

redandba remountain, that one m ight fancy was s corchedby fire .

T he entry to th e ravine follows th e course of a ri vulet, the boi lingwaters of wh i c h are m ingledwith chem i cal subs tances horrible tothetas te. I nnumerable springs— somesulphurous , others chargedwi th alum or sal t— gus h out at th e base of th e rocks . T here areboth warm andcoldsp r ing s , and hot andboiling some are blueand t ransparent , others wh i te, yellow or red w ith och re. I n acav i t y wh i c h i s called the

“S orcerers ’

Caldron a mas s of blackandfet idmudboil s up ingreat bubbles .

H igher up , the Devil ’s S team-boat ” da rts out jets of gaseous mat ter

,wh i ch issue puffing from awall of rock : fumerolles

may beseen by hundreds on the s ides of th e mountain . A ll thesevarious agents ei th er mu rmur, wh is tle, rumble or roar, and thusa tempes t of dea fening sounds inces santl y fi lls th e g orge. T h e

burning ground , composedof a clayey mud— inone spot yellowwi t h sulph ur

,andin anoth er wh ite w i th ch alk— gives way under

th e feet of th e traveler who ventures on it,and gives vent to puffs

of vapor throug h its numberles s cracks . T hewholegorge appearsto bethe common outlet of numerous reservoirs of various m ineralwaters , all heatedby some great volcanic furnace.

T H E D E V I L’

S CA N YO N .

T he ravine of I n fernillo (L ittle H ell), which i s s ituated atth e base of the volcano of S an V incente

,in th e centre of the

R epubli c of S anS alvador,presents phenomena s im ilar to th ose

of th e“Dev i l ’s Canyon .

” T here,too

,a multitude of s tream s of

boil ing water gus h from th e soil,which i s calc ined like a brick

,

andeddies of vapor spring from th e fissures of the rock with anoise like th e shrill wh i stle of a locomotive . T hemost considerablebody of water issues from a fis sure 32 feet in width wh ichopens under a bedof volcanic rocks at a sligh t elevation abovethe bottom of the valley .

T h e l iquid stream , partially hidden by the clouds of vapor,

which rise from it, is s hut out to a dis tance of 130 feet as i fforce-pump, and the whistl ing of th ewater pent up

,

between

v‘

0LCA N i t: T H E R MA L S PR I N G S . i“. l7

rocks rem inds one of th e furnace of a m anufactory at full work .

O ne m ight fancy that it was th e res piration of some prodigiousbeing hidden under th e mountain .

T he hottest spring s which gus h out on th e surface of th e

g round, such as th ose of L as T rincheras and Comang illas , do notreach the temperature of 2 1 2 ° but we have no righ t toconclude from th is that th ewater in th e interior of th e earth doesnot rise to a much more cons iderable heat . I t is

,on thecontrary ,

certain th at water descending into th e deepes t fis sures of th e

earth alth ough s till m aintaining a l iquid state,m ay reach , inde

pendently of any volcanic action,a tem perature of several

h undred degrees being compres sedby th e liquid mas ses aboveit,it i s not converted into steam . A t a depth wh ic h i s not cer

tainly known, but which various savants h ave approx imatelyfixed at feet

,water of a temperatureexceeding 750

°

(F ah r)ul t imatel y attains elasticity sufficient to overcome the form idableweight of 1500 atmospheres which pres ses on it ; it changes intosteam

,and in th is new form mounts to th e surface of th e earth

throug h the fissures of th e rocks .

F R E S H J E T S or S T E A M .

E ven i f this 5 passing th rough beds of a graduallydecreas ing tem perat s ag ain condensed and runs back againin th e form of water

,still it heats the liqu id which surrounds it

,

and increases its elasticity ; it consequentl y ass ists th e generation of fresh j ets of steam

,which likewise rise toward the upper

reg ions . T hus,step by step

,water i s converted into steam up to

the very surface of th e earth,and springs out from fissures .

In I cel and,California

,N ew Zealand and several other vol

canicregions of the world, jets of steam m ingled with boiling waterare so cons iderable as to rank among th e most as tonis h ing phenomena of the planet . T h e m ost celebrated

,and certainly the

most beautiful,of all th ese springs i s the G reat G ey ser of I celand.

ping over th e low plain at th eetof

318 V O LCA N IC T H E RMA L SPR I N G-S .

which the G eyser itself has formed during the lapse of centuriesis no less than fifty

-two feet inwidth,and serves as the outer

inclosure of a funnel-shaped cavity, seventy-five feet deep, fromth e bottom of which rise th e water and s team . A thin liquid sheetflows over the edges of the basin, and des cends inl ittle cascadesover the outer slope .

T he cold air lowers the tem peratureof thewater on the sur"

face,but the heat increases more and more in all the layers

heneath ; every here andthere bubbles are formed at the bottomof the water

,and burst when they emerge into the air. S oon

bodies of steam rise in clouds in the greenandtransparent water,but , m eeting the colder m as ses on th e surface, they again condense. U ltimately they m ake their way into the bas in

,and

cause the water to bubble up steam rises in difl'

erentplaces fromthe liquidsheet,andth e tem perature of th e whole bas in reachesth e boiling-point the surface swells up in foamy heaps

,and

the ground trem bles and roars with a stifled sound . T he cauldronconstantl y gives vent to clouds of vapor

,wh ich sometimes gather

round the bas in, andsometimes are cleared away by the wind.

L E A P O U T W I T H A CR A S H .

A t intervals, a few moments of s ilence succeed to the

noise of the steam . S uddenly the resistance is overcome,the

enormous j et leaps out with a crash,and

,like a pillar of gl itter

ing marble, shoots up more than 100 feet in the air. A second

andthen a th irdj et rapidly follow ; but the magnificent spectaclelasts but for a few minutes . T hes team blows away ; the water, nowcooled, falls in and round th : bas in ; and for hours

,or even

days , a fresh eruption may be waited for in vain. L eaning overthe edgeof the h ole whence such a storm of foam and water hasjust is sued, and looking at the blue, transparent. and scarcelyrippled surface, one canh ardly believe, says Bunsen, in the sudden ch ange wh ich has taken place.

T he slight depos its of s iliceous m atter wh ich are left by th eevaporation of th e boil ing water have already formed a conicalh illock roundth e spring, and, soonerorlater, the increasing curb

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320 V O LCA N IC T H E R MA L S PR I NG S .

W hakari,in P lenty Bay , th erm al springs , mud fountains

,and

g ey sers rise in more th an a thousandplaces, and in some spotscombine to form cons iderable lakes .

I n some local ities th e hot vapors make their es cape from thes ide s of th e mountains in such abundanceth at th e soi l i s reducedto a soft state over vas t surfaces

,and flows down s lowly to th e

plains in long beds of mud. F or a distance of more th an a m ilea portion of th e L ake of T anpo boils and smokes as i f it washeated by a subterreanean fire

,and th e temperature of its water

reaches,on th e average to 100

° F arth er to th enorth,th e

two s ides of th e valley , through which flows the impetuous riverof W aikato after its issue from L ake T aupo, present, for morethan a m ile

,so l arge a number of water jets , that in one spot as

many as seventy-six are counted. T hese geysers , which rise tovarious heights

,play alternatel y

,as i f obey ing a kindof rhythm

in their successive appearances and d isappearances .

W h ile one springs out of th e ground, falling back into itsbas in in a graceful curve bent by th e wind

,another ceases to

jet out. I n one spot a whole series of jets suddenl y becomequiet andthebas ins of still water em it noth ing but a t h inm istof vapor. F arther on

,h owever

,th e mountain i s all activity ;

liquid columns all at once shine in th e sun,and whi te cascades

fall from terrace to terrace towardthe river. E very moment th efeatures of th e l andscape are being modified

,and fresh voices

take a part in th e marvelous concert of the gush ing springs .

About th e m iddle of th e interval wh ich separates the L akeof T aupo from th e coast of P lenty Bay , several other volcanicpools are dottedabout

,all most rem arkable for their thermal and

jetting springs . O ne of them,however is among th e great

wonders of th eworld. T h is is th eL ake of R otomahanna, a smallbas in of about 1 20 acres

,th e temperature of wh ich

,being raised

by all the hot springs wh i ch feedit,i s about 78 ° Dr.

vonH och stetter has not even attempted to count th e bas ins,t h e

funnels , and the fi ssures from wh i ch the water,s team-mud

,and

sulph urous g ases make their escap e .

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