ICELAND: ITS HISTORY AND INHABITANTS. 279 



1766, a fragment of basaltic scoria was hurled from Hekla to Yidi- 

 vellir, a distance of 103 miles. 



The geysers have been so much written about that I shall leave them 

 out and treat more in detail of the volcanoes of Iceland. vSeveral 

 new geysers burst out during the earthquakes in 1896, Avhile the 

 well-known Stroklair disappeared, having been in existence one 

 hundred and seven years. 



The crater chains and volcanic fissures run in certain directions, and 

 there are at present two lines in active condition. The one runs from 

 southwest to northeast and contains the craters of Reykjanes, the 

 Hekla, and other volcanoes of southern Iceland. The second line 

 runs from south to north and contains the M^'vatn and VatnajokuU 

 volcanoes. Hot springs and sulphur mines occupy the same lines, 

 which are also taken by mountain ranges and submarine reefs. 

 Earthquakes run in the same directions. 



Eruptions are not so frequent as in the south of Europe. Hekla 

 breaks out at intervals of seventy to eight}^ years, other volcanoes 

 even less frequenth\ 



Hekla, "The Cloak" (from the shape), the most famous of Ice- 

 landic volcanoes, is 32 miles inland from the nearest point of the 

 coast, and situated west of Torfajokull. Its height is 5,108 feet. It 

 is a longitudinally shaped mountain running southwest to northeast, 

 piled up of lava blocks, pumice, and ashes, with snow-filled craters 

 standing in a row on top ; it is an intermediate form between Vesu- 

 vius and a crater chain. Parallel with it run other mountain ridges 

 of palagonite, breccia, and tufa (1.000 feet to 1,500 feet) studded with 

 craters. The Norwegian mineralogist, A. Helland, counted fourteen 

 craters in a direct line near Hekla northeast to southwest, each with a 

 lava stream of its own. Vast fields of lava extend round Hekla in 

 every direction. 



Of Hekla's eruptions eighteen are historically known, without 

 reckoning three or four eruptions from craters in its neighborhood. 



The first-known eruption of Hekla took place in 1104, the last in 

 1875. One of the most violent was the sixth eruption, July 13, A. D. 

 1300. " The mountain was riven asunder lengthways, and out of 

 this yawning chasm rushed forth columns of fire and streams of 

 lava which ran nearly to the coast, 32 miles away, leaving here and 

 there in the hollows on its course lakes of liquid fire. The crater 

 vomited red-hot lava blocks to an unprecedented height. They 

 cooled suddenly in the air and burst asunder with a thundering 

 crash. * * * \^ strong southeaster carried the huge clouds of 

 sand and ashes as far as 180 miles from the volcano, so that they 

 lay thick on the ground all that distance. The eruption lasted on 

 unbroken for nearly a year. On December 28 such masses of sand 



