290 Notice of Active and Extinct Volcanos. 



is very rugged and forbidding ; its highest mountain is two 

 thousand eight hundred and eighteen feet above the sea, and 

 is covered with pumice sustaining a thin soil. 



St. Helena rendered memorable as the prison and grave of 

 Napoleon, was probably raised out of the sea, by volcanic 

 action. In the interior of the island, is a crater called the 

 devil's punch bowl ; its dimensions are in two diameters, one 

 thousand and seven hundred yards, and it is two hundred 

 and fifty yards deep. 



The Isle of France, on the eastern side of Africa is itself a 

 conical mountain, as it rises on all sides towards the center, 

 and there is besides a range of mountains, all of which con- 

 sist of volcanic matter, either lava or basalt. 



Bourbon has a similar character ; it slopes on all sides up- 

 ward towards a centre, and consists of two volcanic moun- 

 tains of different ages : the southern, which is the smallest, 

 being still active, while the western is extinct. Earthquakes 

 are sometimes experienced in those parts of the island that 

 are most remote from the active volcano. 



This volcano produces a variety of pumice, resembling spun 

 glass, similar to that which is so abundantly produced at 

 Hawaii (Owyhee.) 



Africa is fringed with volcanic islands, but it is still perhaps 

 doubtful whether there is any active volcano, whose existence 

 is well established, on the African continent, although many 

 circumstances, mentioned by ancient authors, would lead to 

 the presumption that some portion of the chain of Atlas is 

 of this character, and modern travellers lead us to suppose 

 that some of the mountains of Egypt and Lybia are referri- 

 ble to the same class. 



Asia. 



Asia and its islands abound with volcanos, and whatever 

 may be said of Egypt, there is no doubt of their existence 

 on the opposite shore and in the Red Sea itself. Bruce de- 

 scribes an active volcano in the island of Zibbel Teir, in 

 nortli latitude 16°, and other volcanic appearances are de- 

 scribed as existing about Suez ; the Arabian gulph at Donnar, 

 Medina, &c. We must refer our readers to Professor Daube- 

 ny's work for the course of investigation, which leads him to 

 conclude that Palestine has been the scene of extensive vol- 

 canic agency, and that the very imagery and allusions of the 



