Condition of Vesuvius. 



of volcanic fires. In 1830, the descent to the interior was barely 

 practicable ; but it continued nearly tlie same as in '29, till the sum- 

 mer of 1832, when it assumed very nearly the form and appearance 

 that it now has. There was, at that time, a falling in of the walls of 

 the crater, and also judging from appearances, 1 should say that the 

 lava, as it boiled up, had cooled, and thus closed all the view to the 

 burning furnace. I have heard it said, that the change in its appear- 

 ance is so great that it can hardly be recognised as the same moun- 

 tain. At the eruption of 1832, a stream of lava descended the 

 mountain towards Portici. In the description of every emption, that 

 I have read, there is noticed some change in the form of the crater. 

 In 1822 the walls of it were so much broken off, as to lessen the 

 height of the mountain one hundred feet ; and thus it appears, that, 

 by an examination of its present state, there can be obtained scarce- 

 ly any idea of the volcano, as it was thirty or forty years since. 

 The present circumference of this plain, is nearly four miles, more 

 than twice that of the mouth of the crater in 1830. Part of the 

 old walls exist on the north east side, and there only. 



As I walked over the plain — rather a rough one — I noticed in the 

 numerous fissures in the lava, on this the western side, that the rocks 

 were heated to redness within two or three feet of the surface ; and 

 from many places the sulphurous vapors issued freely. These fis- 

 sures were too shallow to allow any far insight into the interior of the 

 mountain. The volcano, at the time, was in considerable action. 

 The smoke, mostly sulphurous acid, issued in a dense cloud from the 

 small crater, and was carried by a strong wind from the north east, 

 across the path we were about to take. After one or two fruitless at- 

 tempts, the danger of suffocation driving us back, we gained the 

 windward side of the cone. It was south of east of this smaU cone, 

 (I so call it to distinguish it from the old and larger one,) about 

 twenty rods from it, that the grandest sight was presented us. Du- 

 ring the preceding few moments, we had moved along with rather 

 a hastened step, on account of the heat of the lava under our feet — 

 for a red heat was frequently seen, within ten w twelve inches of the 

 surface, and the rocks were yellow with an incrustation of sulphur. 

 We were soon on the borders of what was, apparently, a fountain of 

 melted lava, which making its way from under the solid lava, at the 

 slow rate of a mile an hour, ran down the back side of the mountain 

 towards Pompeii, not proceeding far enough however, to injure an 

 uninjured country. It resembled much a stream of fused iron. Its 



