THE GüEAT uliUPTIuN OF SAKURA-JIMA IN 1914. 41 



1ÎIVEKI.ESS i^^j^ instead tho term ' kawabara ' (spoken lunnthai'ii) 



is of frequent occurrence, which signifies valley train or wash 

 plain ; for, in ordinary days not a drop of water is found in the 

 percolating river-bottoms, e.g., the ' kawabara ' of Take, Akamizu 

 and Nojiri, the latter two, however, are now overfloodcd by the 

 recent lava- sheet from Yuno-liira on the west side. 



§11. The Eruptions at Sakura-jima prior to 1914. 



Eeuptiox- 



PEr.IOD I. 



A) The Eruption-periods I.-I V.— Tho building up of Sakura- 

 jima is stated in various works to have taken place in 

 71^ the years 708 a.d. (1st year of Wadô era), 716 (2nd 



717 



718 year of Eeiki era), 717 (1st year of Yôrô era), and 718. 



The island is said to have welled up and risen in a night.^^ 

 Eruption- ' ^\^\^q frontier of Osumi and Satsuîiia was in the 



PEKIOD II. 



^*^^ 8th year of the Tembiô-Hôji era enveloped in dark 



clouds in which the lightning darted about. After seven days it 

 became clear. In tlio sea of Shinni-mura (present Shikiné ?) 

 three islands were formed of sand, stone and lava, the eruption 

 being accompanied by flames. The islands so formed appear 

 conjointly like an open shed. Sixty-two divisions of houses were 

 destroyed and eighty people killed ' (Zoku-Nihoiigi). Other books 

 say that the islands referred to are Kamizukuri or Kojima, by 

 Avhicli is meant the ruin-like Kojima group off Kokubu Station. 

 In July-August, 766, they were visited by terrible earthquakes. 

 That the whole story was an erroneous interpretation of ancient 

 records is elucidated elsewhere (p. 29). 



1) From 708 to 718 Ivjigosliinui Bay seems (o Lave been the seat of violent volcanic 

 activity, constitutiug one eruptive period, having in common a hypoceutre of acti^'ity. It is 

 impossible for the writer to locate the exact ]ioints of vents, nor can he say whether they lie 

 excliLsively within the area of the jiresent Saknra jima or not. 



