1891.] D. Praiu — On the present condition of Barrett Island. 85 



The colunifi of steam from the crater- which was " visible from the 

 *' landing-place or even some distance out at sea " to Mr. Mallet (L c, 

 p. 23) in February 1884 and was " barely visible at 3 miles distance " 

 to Capt. A. Carpenter in 1886 (Beoords, Geol, Surv., India, xx, 

 48) was no longer visible from these points in April 1891 ; on 

 ascending the cone, however, steam was found to issue still at the 

 places indicated in Mr. Mallet's memoir. The most copious discharge 

 was still from the solfatara on the inner aspect of the north side of the 

 crater. 



A deposit of sulphur of an average thickness of 2^ inches had been 

 laid down on this solfatara since 1884. On the other solfataras far less 

 had been deposited ; the crusts on the two next largest — that on the 

 inner aspect of the south side of the crater and that outside the crater 

 on. the north-east face of the cone — were but f in. to 1 inch thick. 

 The new crusts were very similar to the old ones described by Mr. 

 Mallet (I. c, p. 18) except as regards thickness; when pieces were 

 removed, however, they were found to be looser in texture and more 

 friable than the fragments of the old deposit that lay scattered about 

 the crater and in estimating the present value of the solfataras as a 

 sulphur-supply this should perhaps be taken into account. The tem- 

 perature of the steam at the point of issue was not determined in 1891, 

 but it can hardly be as hot now as in 1884 — it was then 219^ F. — since 

 there was no crevice in which it was impossible to place one's hand for 

 at least a few seconds. 



In taking the temperature of the hot spring Mr. McOausland, Com- 

 mander of H. M. I. M. Nancowry very kindly assisted me. At high 

 tide there was no trace of percolation of water through the shingle of 

 the small landing-place beach, but when the tide had ebbed water was 

 found to ooze through this shingle at five different points round the 

 head of the bay. Having scooped out pools sufficiently deep for com- 

 plete immersion of a thermometer at these spots we took temperatures 

 in as nearly as possible the fashion described by Mr. Mallet (I. c, p. 

 26). In the most northerly small pool (furthest from the recent lava), 

 the thermometer registered 102^ F. ; in the next pool towards the lava, 

 103° F. ; then 104° F. ; then 106° F. ; finally in the pool nearest of all 

 to the recent lava 104° F. ; Mr. Mallet found that in 1884 the tem- 

 perature of the different springs increased with their proximity to the 

 recent lava ; the discrepancy of our results as regards the last pool and 

 that next adjacent to it (which, though five yards further from the 

 lava was nevertheless 2° F. warmer) from the experience of Mr. Mallet 

 led us to repeat the whole observation and to take the temperatures in 

 these two last pools several times ; our results were, however, the same 



