Some Ohfervations on Boyling Fountains, and Suly- 
terraneous Steams : by Dr.. Tancred Robin- 
fon,Fe]Iow of the R. S. 
/ 
WAIking out one day from Motitpelier in company - 
of my ingenious, and worthy freinds Dr. SloaUy 
and Dr. TFa^ely, in order to vifit the famous boyling 
fountain near Peroul^ a fmall Village lying ealt about 
league from thence, not far from the Etang, I found the . 
V water to heave, and boyle up very furiouflj in fmall bub-; 
bles ; as the learned Mr. 7^^/ relates in his travells P.47P, 
and it was very manifeft,that this Fh(?nomenon proceeded' 
from a Vapour breaking out of the Earth, and milling 
through the water, fo as to tofs it up with noife, andin^ 
many bubbles :f for upon digging any v/here near the 
ditch,and pouring other water upon the dry place newly 
dug, I obferv'd in it immediatly the fame boyling 
which the afore mentioned exquifite naturalift does like- 
wife remark in his travells. The like bubbling of water 
is alfo found round about P^raz^/, upon the Sea fhore^and 
in the Etang it felf : in order to fearch out more narrowly 
the caule of this odd Fhcenomenon^ I took forae of the 
fa nd and Earth out of the fountain, and ditch, putting 
it into VefTels, and pouring the fame water upon it, but 
there did not appear the leaft perturbation, or altera- 
tion thereupon s the fuperficies of the water continuing 
very fmooth, equal , and quiet : yet ftill, for further 
fatisfadion, I fought out, and difcover'd in feverall dry 
places of the ground thereabouts, many little Venti- 
ducts, pafTages, or clefts, where the fteam ifFued forth ; 
at the mouths of thefe channells or pipes, placing fome 
light bodys, as feathers, fmall thin pieces of ftraws^ 
leaves, ^c. I found them foon remov'd away 3 this va- 
pour 
