89 



Jibltow, like a vast amphitheatre. From many places of 

 this space, issue volumes of sulphureous smoke, which 

 being much heavier than the circumambient air, instead 

 of rising in it, as smoke generally does, immediately on 

 its getting oat of the crater, rolls down the side of the 

 mountain like a torrent, till coming to that part of the 

 atmosphere of the same specific gravity with itself, it 

 sliootd off horizontally ; and forms a large tract in the air, 

 according to the direction of the wind ; which happily 

 for us, carried it exactly to the side opposite to that where 

 we were placed. The crater is so hot that it is very 

 dangerous, if not impossible, to go down into it : besides 

 the smoke is very incommodious, and in many places 

 the surface is so soft, there have been instances of people 

 sinking down into it, and paying for their temerity with 

 their lives. Near the centre of the crater is the great 

 mouth of the volcano, that tremendous gulph so celebra- 

 ted in all ages. We beheld it with awe, and with horror, 

 and were not surprised that it had been considered as the 

 place of the damned. When we reflect on tile immensity 

 of its depth, the vast cells and caverns whence so many 

 lavas have issued ; the boiling of the matter, the shaking 

 of the mountain, the explosion of flaming rocks, we must 

 allow that the liveliest imagination hardly ever formed 

 an idea of hell more dreadful. 



Kircher pretends to have measured it, and to have 

 found it four thousand French toises in height ; which 

 is more than any of the Andes are. The Italian mathe- 

 maticians are still more absurd. Some of them make 

 it eight miles, some six, and some four. Arnici, the 

 last, and I believe the best who has made this attempt, 

 reduces it to three miles, two hundred and sixty-four 

 paces ; but even this must be exceedingly erroneous, and 

 probably the perpendicular height of JEtna is little more 

 than two miles. 



It is a curious consideration that this mountain should 

 re-unite every beauty and every horror; and in short, 

 all the inost opposite and dissimular objects ia nature. 

 Here you observe a gulf, that formerly threw out tor- 

 reats of fire, now covered with the most luxuriant vege* 



