348 Immenfe Volume of Vapour. [Book VI. 



o'clock in the morning of that day, as a violent mock 

 of an earthquake was felt at that moment at Refma, 

 and other parts fituate at the foot of the volcano. The 

 clouds of fmoke, mixed with the afhes, were of fuch a 

 denfityas-to appear to have the greateft difficulty in 

 forcing their paffage out of the now widely extended 

 mouth of Vefuvius, which, fince the top fell in, is de- 

 fcribed as not much fhort of two miles in circumfe- 

 rence. One cloud heaped on another, and fucceeding 

 one another inceflantly, formed in a few hours fuch a 

 gigantic and elevated column of the darkeft hue over 

 the mountain, as feemed to threaten Naples with im- 

 mediate deflruclion, having at one time been bent over 

 the city, and appearing to be much "too mafllve and 

 ponderous to remain long fufpended in the air ; it was, 

 befides, replete with the ferilli, or volcanic lightning, 

 which was ftronger than common lightning, juft as 

 Pliny the younger defcribes it in one of his letters to 

 Tacitus, when he fays fulgoribus ill<e et fimiles et majores 

 erant*. (See plate III.) 



Vefuvius was at this time completely covered, as 

 were all the old black lavas, with a thick coat of thofe 

 fine light-grey afhes already fallen, which gave it a 

 cold and horrid appearance ; and in comparifon of the 

 abovementioned enormous mafs of clouds, which cer- 

 tainly, however it may contradict our idea of the ex- 

 tenfion of our atrnofphere, rofe many miles above thq 



This view was taken from Naples, and gives a very good idea 

 of the appearance of Mount Vefuvius, like a molehill, in compa- 

 rifon of the enormous mafs that hung over it. The black lines 

 {how the form of the top of Vefuvius, as it was before this erup- 

 tion, and when the crater was only the width of the upper line. 

 On the fide of the mountain is reprefented the fpot whence the lava 

 firft iffued on the i$th of June, with its courfe to Torre del Greco 

 and the fca. 



mountain. 



