IK) Washington — Submarine Eruptions of 1831 and 1891. 



FOERSTNER VOLCANO, 1891. 



Bibliography. 



The eruption of 189 L, near Pantelleria, is less well-known 

 than that of 1831. Lasting only about a week, it was not seen 

 by any scientific observer, and the descriptions have been 

 derived from the testimony of fishermen. The fullest account 

 is that of A. Ricco.* Mr. G. W. Butler visited Pantelleria 

 about one month after the eruption and communicates some 

 notes of his own,f with a brief description of the bombs (accom- 

 panied by an analysis by Gr. H. Perry). He gives a translation 

 of Kicco's report,:): on which the descriptions given by Geikie§ 

 and MercalliJ are also based. H. Foerstner, in a paper describing 

 the rocks, 1 ! gives a brief account of the eruption, based partly 

 on newspaper accounts and partly on Picco's report, though 

 there are some notable discrepancies. 



This submarine volcano or eruptive center, which apparently 

 gave rise to no island which projected above sea-level, has 

 never been named, and is usually referred to as the submarine 

 eruption of 1891, near Pantelleria. For convenience of refer- 

 ence 1 would propose that it be called " Foerstner Volcano," 

 in honor of the able investigator of the rocks of Pantelleria, 

 adjacent to which the eruption took place, and the author of 

 the best analysis and only detailed petrographic description of 

 the rocks thrown out by the eruption yet published. 



The Eruption. 



The following brief account is based chiefly on Butler's 

 translation of Picco's report, as the original was not accessible 

 to me. During 1890 there were premonitory symptoms on 

 Pantelleria, shown by increased activity of fumaroles, earth- 

 quake shocks (which cracked cisterns), and the elevation of a 

 part of the northeast coast. A sharp earthquake was felt during 

 the night of October 14-15, 1891, when a further rise of the 

 same coast line occurred, making the total elevation about 80 

 centimeters, as shown by a line of white incrustations marking 

 the old sea level and by the testimony of the sea-faring popu- 

 lation. 



The eruption was immediately preceded by strong, sussulta- 

 tory shocks on Pantelleria during the night of October 16-17, 

 and the eruption began on the morning of the 17th, after which 



* A. Ricco, Comptes Rendus, Nov. 25, 1891 : and Annali Uff. Centr. 

 Meteor, e Geodinam. (2), pt. 3, vol. xi, 1892. 



f G. W. Butler, Nature, vol. xlv, pp. 154, 251, 1891. 



% G. W. Butler, Nature, vol. xlv, p. 584, 1891. 



§ A. Geikie, Textbook of Geology, I, p. 334, 1903. 



If G. Mercalli, Vulcani Attivi delia Terra, Milano, p. 265, 1907. 



1[ H. Foerstner, Tsch. Min. Pet. Mitth., vol. xii, p*. 510, 1891. 



