88 Sir William Hamilton's Account of 
on the surface of the sea; and I have since been assured by 
many of the fishermen of Portici, Torre del Greco, and Torre 
dell' Annunziata (all of which towns are situated at the foot 
of Vesuvius), that they could not for many days during the 
eruption catch a fish within two miles of that coast, which 
they hadevidently deserted. 
When this lava is cooled sufficientty, which may not be un- 
til some months hence, I shall be curious to examine whether 
the centre, or solid and compact parts, of the lava that ran into 
the sea has taken, as it probably may, the prismatical form 
of basalt columns, like many other ancient lavas disgorged 
into the water. The exterior of this lava at present, like all 
others, offers to the eye nothing but a confused heap of loose 
scoriae. The lava over the cathedral, and in other parts of the 
town, is upwards of 40 feet in thickness ; the general height 
of the lava during its whole course is about 12 feet, and in 
sqme parts not less than a mile in breadth. I walked in the 
few remaining streets of the town, and I went on the top of 
one of the highest houses that was still standing, although sur- 
rounded by the lava ; I saw from thence distinctly the whole 
course of the lava, that covered the best part of the town ; 
the tops of the houses were just visible here and there in some 
parts, and the timbers within still burning caused a bright 
flame to issue out of the surface ; in other parts, the sulphur 
and salts exhaled in a white smoke from the lava, forming a 
white or yellow crust on the scoriae round the spots where it 
issued with the most force. Often I heard little explosions, 
and saw that they blew up, like little mines, fragments of the 
scoriae and ashes into the air; I suppose them to have been 
occasioned either by rarefied air in confined cellars, or perhaps 
