502 Transactions. — Geology. 



The ashes of the explosion I witnessed were collected at 

 Waihohonu by Mr. Peters, from whom I obtained a small 

 bottleful. A Em-opean settler at Otakou told me that the 

 lightning was seldom so lively as during the night of the 14th 

 December, 1896, and that most of the ashes produced by Te 

 Mari were very fine, and almost like flour. Perhaps, there- 

 fore, coarse ashes favour the development of electricity by 

 increasing the friction. 



As to the flames, I need not remind you that frequently 

 flames in volcanoes have been described — and doubtlessly will 

 be described — which were only illuminated steam or smoke. 

 In popular descriptions, out of a hundred alleged flames 

 ninety-nine are certainly not flames. Most excursionists to 

 Vesuvius report seeing flames though there are none. There- 

 fore the very word "flame" in connection with volcanoes is 

 apt to cause suspicion. The only thing I can do is to repeat 

 that I am quite certain that I saw illuminated steam fre- 

 quently. The reflection of incandescent matter on steam can 

 imitate the appearance of flames of the ordinary colour — and 

 it frequently does — but it never can produce the effect of blue 

 flames. Of the reddish flames, therefore, I am not so certain ; 

 but we must admit the fact of the blue flames. The only 

 explanation, moreover, which fully agrees with the appearance 

 of those flames is that during the explosion there escaped 

 combustible gases which at a certain height above the crater 

 met the oxygen necessary for taking lire. I beheve that 

 vaporized sulphur would answer all the facts better than 

 hydrogen, the flames of which are less brilhant and less dis- 

 tinctly blue. 



The only specimen of volcanic activity similar to that of 

 Te Mari that I know of by personal observation is the small 

 volcano on the southernmost of the Liparian Islands (north 

 from Sicily) called "Volcano." This little volcanic cone, after 

 a long rest, resumed activity in 1888 — August, I believe — 

 emitting, at intervals, huge masses of ash-bearing steam, and 

 sometimes large incandescent bombs, but no outflow of lava. 

 I visited it in June of 1889, when it was making explosions 

 similar to that of Te Mari. The explosions were, however, 

 more frequent, there being many in one day ; but they were 

 less violent — at any rate, during my presence. The recently 

 discharged bombs betrayed the fact that there had been 

 magma in the depths, as their surface showed evidence of 

 fusion ; but during my presence no bombs were thrown. 

 Besides, Volcano, in the intervals between two explosions, 

 was perfectly quiet, and not even from the crater-rim was 

 any smoke or steam visible at its bottom, allowance being 

 made for some fumaroles on the outer slope of the cone. Te 

 Mari, however, was always steaming ; and after the explosion 



