ABOUT VOLCANOS AND EARTHQUAKES. 13 



or almost always, followed by an upburst of the subter- 

 ranean fiery matter. The earthquake of Cutch was 

 terminated by the outbreak of a volcano at the town of 

 Bhooi, which it destroyed. 



(19.) Now where, following out this idea, should we 

 naturally expect such cracks and outbreaks to happen ? 

 Why, of course, along those lines where the relief of 

 pressure on the land side is the greatest, and also its 

 increase on the sea side ; that is to say, along or in the 

 neighbourhood of the sea-coasts, where the destruction 

 of the land is going on with most activity. Well, now, 

 it is a remarkable fact in the history of volcanos, that 

 there is hardly an instance of an active volcano at any 

 considerable distance from the sea-coast All the great 

 volcanic chain of the Andes is close to the western 

 coast line of America. Etna is close to the sea ; so is 

 Vesuvius ; Teneriffe is very near the African coast ; 

 Mount Erebus is on the edge of the great Antarctic 

 continent. Out of 225 volcanos which are known to 

 have been in actual eruption over the whole earth 

 within the last 150 years, I remember only a single 

 instance of one more than 320 miles from the sea, and 

 even that is on the edge of the Caspian, the largest of 

 all the inland seas I mean Mount Demawend in Persia. 



(20.) Suppose from this, or from any other cause, a 

 crack to take place in the solid crust of the earth. Don't 

 imagine that the melted matter below will simply ooze 

 up quietly, as water does from under an ice-crack. No 

 such thing. There is an element in the case we have 

 not considered : steam and condensed gases. We aU 



