142 THE ARCTURUS ADVENTURE 



What the temperature must have been under- 

 ground to instigate such a cauldron is unthinkable. 



The yellow froth near the shore seemed to indi- 

 cate a considerable amount of sulphur and I knew 

 by experience that those grey gases alternating 

 with the steam were in part at least composed of 

 hydrogen sulphide and carbon monoxide. I liked 

 to think of the lava as causing real additions to our 

 upper world — new volumes of hydrogen and car- 

 bon dioxide actually spread abroad in the atmo- 

 sphere for the first time, and, before our eyes, rock 

 substance changing from white, to scarlet, to pink, 

 and to black, which since the beginning of the world 

 had lain miles deep within its heart. 



I have dwelt on the inorganic activity but, from 

 the very first glimpse we had of the eruption, ani- 

 mal life was everywhere in evidence. Within two 

 hours of its beginning, action and reaction had be- 

 gun, direct and indirect effects on a host of crea- 

 tures. A veritable black wave of fish passed us 

 soon after we entered the green water — a school, 

 or better a mob, of great tunnies, swimming close 

 together with all their strength, panic written in 

 every movement, headed for blue, cool water. 

 Close to the gangway floated a great octopus, a 

 yard long, half dead, his tentacles feebly moving, 

 with waves of vivid color coming and going over his 

 flabby body. A few small fish drifted by on their 

 backs, and writhing, twisting sea-worms. In a 

 small boat I could have learned much more of the 

 effects of this rarest of rare phenomena. 



Birds, to my surprise, were the dominating fea- 



