Volcanoes in the Bay of Bengal. 3 / 



200 miles, a range of hills of volcanic origin is set down on 

 the map about 20 miles from the shore,, with a second range 

 behind them, undescribed, like that on the African side. The 

 lower range is a continuation of the Aden volcanoes, thus 

 extending in a continuous line for above 300 miles along- 

 shore. There can be no reasonable doubt that the whole 

 basin of the Red Sea,— here about 100 miles across from the 

 Arabian to the African chain of peaks, — is volcanic, studded, 

 as the intermediate channel is, with cones, now in a state of 

 activity ; so that the ascertained area of this region, from 

 Aden to near Ankobar, from this to Gibbel Teir, is 350 from 

 E. to W., and 450 from S. to N. Within the channel of the 

 Red Sea, the most conspicuous peaks are the Haruish Islands, 

 and Gibbel Toogur, betwixt lat. 13° 40' and 14° ; the Zey- 

 beyar Islands in lat. 15° ; and Gibbel Teir in lat. 15° 30'. A 

 violent eruption of short continuance occurred in the Zeybeyar 

 Islands on the 6th of August 1846. Gibbel Teir has for 

 nearly a century been known to be in a state of constant ac- 

 tivity. It was visited by Bruce in 1774 ; it then gave out 

 smoke, and was said occasionally to emit flame and stones ; 

 the masses of lava he describes as having shells imbedded 

 in them, a circumstance that has not, so far as I have observed, 

 been noticed by any other traveller.* It was visited by 

 Captain Elman, when engaged in survey in 1838, t and by Dr 

 Kirk in 1841. The island is circular, about 1\ miles round, 

 resembling, on being approached, a hill of considerable eleva- 

 tion, rising from a plain, terminating in a bluff steep on the 

 eastern extremity. The summit of the hill is about 300 feet 

 above the sea -level, — there are no soundings close in- shore, 

 at 150 fathoms, so that the visible portion is merely the 

 summit of a hill, at present 1100 feet high, or 1900, if the 

 altitude of 900 assigned it by the chart be correct, the base 

 of which is hid by the waters. J The whole surface is covered 

 with ashes, lava, and cinders ; near the summit, there are 

 about fifteen small open craters, from several of which steam 

 and hot air are continually issuing, and occasionally smoke. 



* See Travels, quoted in Geog. Society's Report for 1850. 

 f I have taken Dr Kirk's description, shortly abridged. 

 \ Dr Kirk makes it 300, Bruce 500 ; in the Survey Chart it is set down at 900. 



