212 COSMOS. 



sofnoni are covered directly by the fluid of the basin. 64 

 .According to Payen's excellent analysis, the gaseous emana- 

 tions contain 0'57 of carbonic acid, 0'35 of nitrogen, and 

 only 0'07 of oxygen, and O001 of sulphuric acid. Where 

 the boracic acid vapours permeate the clefts of the rock, 

 they deposit sulphur. According to Sir "Roderick Murchi- 

 son's investigations the rock is in part of a chalky nature, 

 and in part an eocene formation, containing nummulites a 

 maciffno, which is penetrated by the uncovered and elevated 

 serpentine 65 ol the neighbourhood (near Monte Rotondo). In 

 this case, and in the crater of Volcano, asks Bischof, do 

 not hot aqueous vapours act upon and decompose boracic 

 minerals, such as rocks rich in datolithe, axinite or tourma- 

 line? 66 



In the variety and grandeur of the phenomena, the system 

 of somoni in Iceland exceeds anything that we are ac- 

 quainted with on the continent. Actual mud-springs burst 

 forth in the fumarole-field of Krisuvek and Reykjalidh, 

 from small basins with crater-like margins in a bluish gray 



64 Payen, De I'acide boracique des Suffioni de la Toscane, in the 

 Annaks de Chimie et de Physique, 3me se"rie, t. i, 1841, pp. 247 255 ; 

 Bischof, Chem. imd Physik. Geologic, Bd. i, s. 669691; EtaUissements 

 industriels de I'acide boracique en Toscane, by the Count de Larderel, 

 p. 8. 



65 Sir Eoderick Impey Murchison, On the vents of hot vapour in Tus- 

 cany, 1850, p. 7 (see also tl'e earlier geognostic observations of Hoff- 

 mann, in Karstens und JJechens Archiv fur Mineral. Bd. xiii, 1839, 

 s. 19). From old but trustworthy traditions, Targioni Tozzeti asserts 

 that some of these boracic acid springs which are constantly changing 

 their place of eruption were once seen to be luminous (ignited) at night. 

 In order to increase the geological interest of the observations of Mur- 

 chison and Pareto upon the volcanic relations of the serpentine forma- 

 tion in Italy, I may here advert to the fact that the flame of the Asiatic 

 Chimcera (near the town of Deliktasch, the ancient Phaselis in Lycia, 

 on the west coast of the Gulf of Adalia) which has been burning lor 

 several thousand years, also rises from a hill on the slope of the Soli- 

 mandagh, in which serpentine in position and blocks of limestone have 

 been found, liather more to the south, on the small island of Gram- 

 busa, the limestone is deposited upon dark-coloured serpentine. See 

 the important work of Admiral Beaufort (Survey of the Coasts of Cara- 

 mania, 1818, pp. 40 and 48), whose statements are confirmed by the 

 specimens of rocks just brought home (May, 1854), by a highly talented 

 artist, Albrecht Berg (Pierre de Tchihatcheff, Asie Mineure, 1853, t. i, 

 p. 407.) 



66 Bischof, op. cit. s. 682. 



