652 PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. [aNNO 1711. 



rest, but by telling them, that if they would retire farther into the country, 

 they would be safe there ; and that if the castle was in danger, yet they must 

 necessarily see the lesser Kammeni first entirely destroyed, not only because it 

 lay between the castle and the Black Island, but also because it was much nearer 

 to it than to the castle. 



The Turks, who were then at Santorini, collecting the tribute which this 

 island pays yearly to the Grand Seignior, were not less afraid than the other 

 people : being amazed to see fire break out of the sea where it was so deep, they 

 entreated the christians to pray to god, and especially to make their young 

 children cry kirie eleison ; because, as they said, the children not having 

 offended God, they could more easily appease his anger, than older persons. 

 The fire, however, was then but very little, being not above the breadth of the 

 mouth of a furnace, and did not appear in the day time, but only in the night, 

 from sun setting to sun rising ; and was so far from spreading the whole length 

 of the ridge of stones above mentioned, that it possessed only one small part of 

 it, which was always afterwards the common passage for the smoke and fire. 



As for the first, or White Island, we did not see there either fire or smoke ; 

 yet it continued to increase ; but the Black island increased much faster. We 

 saw every day large rocks rise up on every side of it, which made it sometimes 

 longer, and at other times broader ; and by their height we could very nearly 

 judge how many feet it rose up every day or night. Sometimes these rocks 

 joined to the island, and at other times they were at a distance from it ; so that 

 in less than a month, there were four little black islands, which in a few days 

 after, united together, and made only one island. 



As the smoke increased very much, and there was no wind stirring, it rose 

 up to the middle region of the air, so as to be seen at Candia, Naxos, and 

 other islands ; and in the night time it appeared as a flame, to 1 5 or 20 feet 

 high. The sea was at that time covered with a matter or froth, which in some 

 places was reddish, and in others yellowish ; from whence there proceeded so 

 great a stench over the whole island of Santorini, that for fear of being infected, 

 several persons were obliged to burn incense, and others to make fires on the 

 tops of their houses, to disperse it, and to purify the air. By good luck it did 

 not continue above a day and half ; for a strong south west wind arose, which, 

 together with the motion of the sea, dispersed the frothy matter, but occasioned 

 other ways a great damage to the best part of the island of Santorini. At that 

 time they were in great hopes of having shortly a very plentiful vintage ; when 

 this wind carried all the smoke on their vineyards, which burnt them up in such 

 a manner, that the grapes turned in one night like dried raisins, so that they 

 were forced afterwards to throw them away, because of their sourness ; which 



