22 



than 30 km. were probably carried by these strong _air-cutrents lar 

 from their place of origin. But the fine material that has fallen on 

 Krakatao and was probably not thrown up higher than 20 a 30 km. 

 lias reached the coldest air-zones, from - 80 C tot -55C. In vacuo 

 this very light material would have needed somewhat more than 

 a minute to come down, but due to the resistance of the air 

 this time must in reality have been very much longer. Its falling 

 speed and hence also the heat caused by friction must have been 

 low. This fine material, though very hot when ejected, was during a 

 long time surrounded by extremely cold air and had plenty of time to 

 cool. Tliis is the very plausible explanation given by Verbeek ') 

 of the phenomenon that, whilst the ashes, fallen during the eruption 

 near Ketimbang in Sumatra at a very great distance from Krakatao, 

 ejected under a small angle of elevation and having reached neither 

 a great height nor very cold air, came down so hot that they 

 caused severe burns and even set fire to native houses -), the ashes 

 and small pieces of pumice fallen near Krakatao were by far not so 

 hot and did not cause burns anywhere ;! ). 



At a comparatively small distance (15 20 km.) from Krakatao 

 the falling ashes and grit rendered the air warm and stifling '') 

 but they caused nowhere serious trouble. The pieces of pumice 

 which fell on a ship (Charles Bal) less than 20 km. distant from 

 Krakatao : '), and which ,,covered the decks to three or four inches 

 very speedily" even those ,,of a considerable size and quite warm" 

 were so harmless that the sailors could sufficiently protect them- 

 selves with a southwester (i ); therefore they cannot have had a really 

 high temperature. But another situation presented itself on a ship 

 (Berbice) at a distance between 70 and 90 km. from Krakatao, where 

 the larger pieces of pumice burned holes in garments and sails ') 



') Verbeek, Krakatau, Dutch ;| Edition (1888) p. 124, 125. 



-) Under the pseudonym ,,Miles", Freiherr Von und Zu Egloffstein, head-manager 

 of the tea-plantation Tjikopo near Buitenzorg wrote (Deutsche Wacht, VIII (1922), 

 No. 1 p. !()] about the little village Minanga in South- Sumatra, 80 k m . distant from 

 Krakatao, which village he visited a few days after the eruption: ,,Die meisten Hauser 

 waren verbrannt: aucli waren viele der Bewohner ein Opfer der gliihenden Asche 

 geworden- - Schon von weitem entdeckte ich eine ganze Reihe Iragbahren^ Es 

 waren dies die mit schweren Brandwunden bedeckten Schlachtopfer des gllihenden 

 Aschenregens". 



') I he fact that ashes ejected by a crater came down in the neighbourhood 

 much cooled was i.a. observed in 1817, during the violent eruption of Mount Idien 

 (East-|aval- Cf. | u n g h u h n, |ava, 2nd Dutch Edition II, 710: ,,Die Asche war- 

 dort und uberall als trockner und kalter Aschenregen gefallen. 



') Verbeek, Krakc.tau, Dutch Edition (1888), p . 324. 



r> ) See plate I. 



l! ) Verbeek, Krakatau, Dutch Edition (1888), pp . 69 and 95. 



~) Verbeek, Krakatau, Dutch Edition (1888), pp . 71 and 97. 



