236 THE BEAUTIES OF NATUEE chap. 



lustrous light and most tender shade, tlieir 

 beauty is not to be described." ^ 



VOLCANOES 



Volcanoes belong to a totally different 

 series of mountains. 



It is practically impossible to number the 

 Volcanoes on our earth. Humboldt enumer- 

 ated 223, which Keith Johnston raised to 

 nearly 300. Some, no doubt, are always 

 active, but in the majority the eruptions are 

 occasional, and though some are undoubtedly 

 now extinct, it is impossible in all cases ' to 

 distinguish those which are only in repose 

 from those whose day of activity is over. 

 Then, again, the question would arise, which 

 should be regarded as mere subsidiary cones 

 and which are separate volcanoes. The 

 slopes of Etna present more than 700 small 

 cones, and on Hawaii there are several 

 thousands. In fact, most of the very lofty 

 volcanoes present more or less lateral cones. 



The molten matter, welling up through 



^Mountaineering in 1861. 



