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diff --git a/old/62982-0.txt b/old/62982-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 40cb5ff..0000000 --- a/old/62982-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6681 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Peter Parley's Wonders of the earth, sea, -and sky, by Samuel G. Goodrich - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Peter Parley's Wonders of the earth, sea, and sky - -Author: Samuel G. Goodrich - -Release Date: August 20, 2020 [EBook #62982] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PETER PARLEY'S WONDERS--EARTH, SEA, SKY *** - - - - -Produced by Charlene Taylor, Tom Cosmas and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries) - - - - - - - -[Illustration: XVII - -AURORA BOREALIS] - - - - - PETER PARLEY'S WONDERS - - OF THE - - EARTH, SEA, AND SKY. - - EDITED BY THE REV. T. WILSON. - - A New Edition, - - WITH ADDITIONS AND IMPROVEMENTS. - - LONDON: - - DARTON AND CLARK, HOLBORN HILL. - - - Entered at Stationers' Hall. - - - TO - - GEORGE BIRKBECK, Esq. M.D., F.G.S., - - PRESIDENT OF THE LONDON MECHANICS' INSTITUTION, - - AS A TRIBUTE OF RESPECT - - FOR - - HIS BENEVOLENT AND EFFECTUAL ENDEAVOURS TO PROMOTE THE - DIFFUSION OF KNOWLEDGE, - - This Little Work - - IS, - - WITH PERMISSION, DEDICATED - - BY THE EDITOR. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -It seems to me that there is something very unreasonable in the plan -of a great many of the books intended to introduce young people to -the various branches of Natural History, which have been recently -published. The chief aim of their authors seems to have been to -combine brevity with comprehensiveness. Brevity is, without doubt, a -great advantage, inasmuch as the proverb is true, that a great book -is a great evil; but in my opinion comprehensiveness ought not to be -attempted in books intended for children. If it were desirable, I -might indeed confidently say, that it can never be obtained within -the necessary limits; and the attempt to effect it, will very often -reduce the work to a mere dry table of classification. However neat and -systematic tables of genera and species, and lists of names may look, -they can never convey to the young the elements of sound scientific -method; and will seldom fail in being useless or disgusting to the -mind, at an age when it is seeking for that sort of knowledge which -will exercise the understanding, without burdening the memory. This -healthy appetite ought to be carefully cultivated; and I am satisfied -that if it were so, from the earliest stage of education, we should -have but few complaints of bad memories. The memory is apt to vanish -from those who would make an idol of it; and I am disposed to think -that its cultivation may very safely be omitted, as a direct object -of education, if due care is taken to keep the understanding active, -and to present the matter on which it is to be engaged in the most -entertaining form possible. In fact, what is often termed "a good -memory," that is, a ready recollection independent of the connections -which are made solely by the understanding, is, as we may see by its -fruits in many persons of feeble intellect, by no means desirable. An -apt example of such a memory is afforded, in what Dame Quickly says -to Sir John Falstaff, when she reminds him of a mixed multitude of -unimportant circumstances, with no other principle of arrangement or -connection, than what was supplied by proximity of time and place. - -I would not, however, willingly be supposed to recommend books, -in which systematic arrangement, or the most scrupulous regard to -accurate statement, is overlooked. I had particularly in view that -numerous class of little books, which under various names come out in -series, each volume professing in a manner to comprise _the whole_ -of the branch of Natural History which may be the subject of it, by -its containing a mere arrangement of the names of the phenomena which -the branch includes. There is another and widely different class of -books, in which stories from travellers and other idle gossip of the -like kind, are compiled in an undigested mass, without regard to -the different names by which the same thing may be called, and not -unfrequently to a common respect for truth, which is not much less to -be deprecated. - -And yet to books of this latter description, often of a very -unworthy character, it is that many of us owe the first calling into -consciousness of that taste which may have made us travellers or -naturalists, or lovers of knowledge. I wish that, without copying the -example of their authors, we should learn a lesson from them, and put -it in practice, by striving to form a taste to enjoy knowledge in them -we have to teach, before we attempt any mode of systematic instruction. - -The following little book has been written under the impressions -which I have here stated. I have selected a few of such phenomena -of the Kingdoms of Nature, as seemed to me to have in them most to -excite wonder and admiration; and I have sought to convey distinct -notions with the least possible use of technical language; neither -forgetting the connection of things, nor overloading the statements -with matters that are merely expletive of an arbitrary system. How far -I may have succeeded, is for my little friends, and their instructors, -who have approved of my other books, to decide. Wishing the former as -much pleasure in the reading, as I have had, for their sakes, in the -writing, I take my leave of them. - - P. P. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - PART I.--WONDERS OF THE EARTH. - - Blah. Page - - Chap. I. Parley explains how the Strata of the Earth are placed 1 - - Chap. II. What creatures once lived where Dorsetshire now is 5 - The Icthyosaurus 6 - The Plesiosaurus 14 - The Pterodactyle, &c. 17 - - Chap. III. What sort of a place once existed where the neighbourhood - of Paris is now, and the animals that lived there 21 - The Palæotherium 22 - The Anoplotherium, &c. 25 - The Dinotherium 26 - - Chap. IV. Of Great Caverns in England and Germany, filled with - bones of wild animals 30 - Dr. Buckland's account of the great cave of Gaylenreuth 31 - - Chap. V. Of other animals that once lived in England and elsewhere - The Elephant 34 - The Gigantic Elk 38 - The Megatherium 39 - The Beaver 41 - The Dodo 42 - - Chap. VI. Parley describes Volcanoes, Earthquakes, and Hot Springs 47 - Earthquake of Calabria 49 - Volcanoes 61 - The way in which an Eruption takes place 63 - Lava Streams 65 - Great Lava Streams from Skapta Jokul, in Iceland 69 - Alluvions 70 - The Great Volcano Kirauea, in the island of Hawaii 71 - Of the formation of new islands 76 - Parley describes his visit to the Geysers of Iceland 78 - The Sulphur Mountains and Sulphur Springs 87 - How the Geysers may be caused 89 - - Chap. VII. Of the Rocks called Basaltic 92 - Parley's visit to Staffa 93 - The Giant's Causeway 101 - - Chap. VIII. Why Parley believes that there is a great source of - heat within the globe 103 - - Chap. IX. Parley tells something about the history of Mount - Vesuvius 111 - The Grotto del Cano 112 - Of the death of Pliny, the Naturalist 115 - Herculaneum and Pompeii 124 - - Chap. X. Parley describes the Falls of Niagara 135 - - - PART II.--WONDERS OF THE SEA. - - Chap. I. Parley tells about the Frozen Ocean 144 - Icebergs 146 - Parley's dangerous situation on an Iceberg 150 - - Chap. II. The story of a long journey over the ice with some - Esquimaux 152 - - Chap. III. The journey over the ice, continued 167 - - Chap. IV. The Whale 178 - The mode of catching Whales 183 - Character of the Whale 187 - - Chap. V. A voyage on a Tropical Sea 190 - Trade Winds and Monsoons 191 - - Chap. VI. The Waterspout 194 - How Parley supposes Waterspouts to be caused 199 - - Chap. VII. Coral Reefs and Islands 203 - Various kinds of Coral 204 - The Coral-Making Polypes 206 - Forms of the Coral Reefs 211 - Parley's first sight of one 213 - - Chap. VIII. Luminous appearance of the sea 221 - Animals by which it is occasioned, and the Acalepha - in particular 223 - - Chap. IX. The Cuttle Fish 231 - The Octopus 235 - - Chap. X. The Paper Nautilus, or Argonaut 239 - How Parley saw one sailing on the sea 241 - The Pearly Nautilus 245 - The Nautilus Spirula 248 - - - PART III.--WONDERS OF THE SKY. - - Chap. I. The Colour of the Sky 250 - - Chap. II. The Aurora Borealis 254 - - Chap. III. Parley tells of some other Meteors - Parhelia or Mock Suns 263 - Ignes Fatui 264 - Experiment to show the cause 266 - - Chap. IV. Shooting Stars 267 - What they are 269 - - Chap. V. Meteoric Stones, or Aerolites 273 - How they are caused 277 - - Chap. VI. Bloody Rain 280 - Red Snow 281 - Showers of Frogs and Fish 282 - - Chap. VII. The Spectre of the Brocken 285 - - Chap. VIII. Some other instances of Aerial Reflection - Souter Fell 291 - What a Friend of Parley's saw 293 - Dover Castle 293 - What Humboldt saw 294 - What Captain Scoresby saw 295 - Apparent distance of Object 296 - - Chap. IX. Fata Morgana 299 - The Mirage 299 - - Chap. X. How Parley supposes these appearances to be produced 303 - Refraction 305 - Reflection 311 - - Conclusion. - Of some other Wonders, &c. - - Section I. How we ought to think upon what we know 314 - II. Ever Part of the Earth a Home for something 316 - III. Birds of Passage, Dormice, and Snails 318 - IV. The Rein-deer--the Camel 322 - V. Benefit of the difference of Climate 324 - VI. The same Organs in different Animals developed in - various modes and degrees--the Acalepha, Actinia, - and Sepia 326 - VII. How the Stars and we are connected together-- - Gravitation--Aerolites 330 - VIII. Dew 332 - IX. How every thing is endowed with a tendency to preserve - its own life, and the existence of its race 334 - X. The Bud of the Poppy--long retention of life by seeds - and roots 336 - XI. Of Seeds which are furnished with wings or sails 339 - XII. Conclusion of the conclusion 340 - - - - -List of Plates. - - - PLATE Page - - I. EXTINCT ANIMALS THAT ONCE LIVED WHERE DORSETSHIRE NOW IS 5 - - II. EXTINCT ANIMALS THAT ONCE LIVED WHERE PARIS NOW IS 21 - - III. GREAT BONE CAVERN OF GAYLENREUTH 30 - - IV. GIGANTIC ELK AND MEGATHERIUM 38 - - V. VESUVIUS, WITH THE PINE-TREE CLOUD 64 - - VI. VESUVIUS IN ERUPTION AT NIGHT 66 - - VII. THE GEYSERS OF ICELAND 78 - - VIII. ISLAND OF STAFFA 93 - - IX. FINGAL'S CAVE 97 - - X. FORUM OF POMPEII 131 - - XI. GREAT FALL OF NIAGARA 135 - - XII. ESCAPE ON THE ICE 157 - - XIII. THE WATER-SPOUT 194 - - XIV. ACTINIÆ--CORAL BUILDERS 206 - - XV. SEPIAS 231 - - XVI. NAUTILUS 239 - - XVII. AURORA BOREALIS (FRONTISPIECE.) - - XVIII. SPECTRE OF THE BROCKEN 285 - - XIX. DOVER CASTLE 293 - - XX. FATA MORGANA 299 - - - - - WONDERS OF THE EARTH, - - SEA, AND SKY. - - - - - PART I. - - WONDERS OF THE EARTH. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -PARLEY EXPLAINS HOW THE STRATA OF THE EARTH ARE PLACED. - - -I am now going to tell you, my young friends, about some of the -wonderful things in the earth, sea, and sky. A great number of them I -have seen myself in my travels through various countries, and others I -have only read of; but I shall tell you nothing that is not strictly -true, for I do not wish so much to astonish you as to make you take -pleasure in contemplating the works of God, and to increase your -knowledge of His goodness, wisdom, and power. - -I shall begin with some of the wonders of the earth which, as I suppose -you know, belong to the branch of natural history which is called -geology; and to enable you to understand what follows, I must first -explain how the materials which compose the ground you tread upon are -arranged. - -If you hastily travel over any extensive tract of country, such as that -between New York and Philadelphia, or between London and Bristol, you -might think that all the different substances, clay, chalk, limestone, -and granite, were irregularly mixed together. This is, however, not -the case, when taken on a great scale; for if you more carefully -examine, you will find that the various sorts of earth are disposed in -layers, or _strata_, and that a uniform order of arrangement is nearly -preserved. - -If these layers were perfectly horizontal, laid one over another like -the coats of an onion, we should have to dig through one before we -could get to the second, and our knowledge of what the globe consists, -would be much more limited than it is; for the greatest depth to which -men have descended in the deepest mines, is not much greater than the -thickness of one of the strata. - -But, instead of this, the surface is broken up by some force from -beneath elevating portions, so as to form mountains and hills; and in -consequence of this the edges of the strata appear on the surface one -after another; just as you would see the edges of a row of bricks that -had been set up on their ends, and then the last one thrown down so as -to push down all the others. - -[Illustration] - -This is the way in which the strata are placed in the neighbourhood of -Weymouth. - -[Illustration] - -The chief reason why I wished you to understand this is, that you -may see how it is known that one stratum is older than another. It -is evident that the substance marked _a_, in the section, which -is limestone, must have been deposited before _b_, while _b_ must -certainly be older than _c_. - -Now in most of the strata above the granite, which is nearly always in -the position of the oldest formation, there are found various shells, -plants, and bones of animals; and where certain remains of different -animals or vegetables are found in one stratum, it is concluded that -they must have been living about the same time. - -Most of the animals of the older strata were different in form from any -at present known to exist; and some of them are very remarkable, and if -they were alive now, would seem to us very strange and awkward. - -[Illustration: PLATE I - -EXTINCT ANIMALS.] - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -WHAT CREATURES ONCE LIVED WHERE DORSETSHIRE NOW IS. - - -I will show you a picture of what creatures were once living where the -town of Lyme Regis, in Dorsetshire, now stands, and tell you something -about their structure and their habits. You may perhaps be ready to -think that a great deal of what we profess to know concerning them, -is the work of fancy, but I can assure you it is not, and by and by I -will endeavour to convince you that there is reason enough for you to -believe what I tell you. - - -THE ICHTHYOSAURUS. - -That large animal lying on the ground, is called the _Icthyosaurus_, -from two Greek words signifying _Fish-Lizard_, in consequence of his -possessing some of the peculiarities of both fishes and lizards. - -The usual length of this creature was from twenty to thirty feet. It -possessed a most surprising combination of the powers and qualities of -different animals which are now in existence. In its general form and -character it must have been something like the modern porpoise; but it -had the teeth of a crocodile, the head of a lizard, the back-bone of a -fish, and the fins or _paddles_, of a whale. - -I shall spend some little time in explaining to you each of these -particulars, that you may see how wisely all the parts of living things -are framed to supply their wants, and adapt them to the circumstances -in which they are placed. - -The head was not very different from that of a crocodile, or lizard, in -its general shape. The teeth were precisely like those of a crocodile, -and grew up in the same manner. Creatures of this sort lead a ruffian -sort of life, always biting something or other, and as they live very -much in the dark at the bottom of the water, perhaps now and then snap -at a stone or a piece of hard wood by mistake, and often break their -teeth; and in order therefore to keep them in constant repair, they -have a fresh set once a year, or at very short intervals, so that they -are always growing. The young tooth _a_, springs up inside the old one -_b_, till it becomes so large that it splits its predecessor, and the -pieces fall off, just as the covering of some sorts of buds falls off -as the flower expands, as you will see in this cut, representing one of -the fossil teeth. - -[Illustration] - -You must have noticed in the picture the great length of his snout. -In a jaw-bone of such amazing length which was to be applied to such -violent purposes, it was necessary there should be great strength. -There were two ways of obtaining this: one would have been by having -the bones very hard and stout; but this would not do, because they -would then have been so heavy that the animal would have found -difficulty in raising his head to the surface of the water for the -purpose of breathing, since it would have overbalanced the other part -of his body. The other contrivance, which was the one adopted by the -wisdom of the Creator, was to make the jaws consist of several thin -bones, _a_, _b_, _c_, _d_, strongly bound together, and terminating in -succession like the plates of steel of which a carriage spring is made. -There are accordingly six of these bones thus disposed. - -[Illustration] - -But this was not all, the principal middle bone marked _b_, instead -of having its fibres run straight, parallel with the others, had them -placed in a slanting position, and thus there was additional firmness -given to the jaw by what ship-builders would call _diagonal bracing_, a -contrivance that you may often see used in the construction of houses -and ships. - -If you have ever seen a crocodile open its mouth, and then snap -together its long thin jaws, so as to make you start with the noise, -you will see how necessary all these contrivances must be for him and -the Icthyosaurus, whose jaws were still thinner, to prevent them from -breaking their bones. - -This however is not at all more wonderful than the eye, which in the -old-fashioned animal I have been describing, was much larger than that -of the crocodile, and not unfrequently bigger than a man's head. From -the very great quantity of light which such a large surface would -receive, the creature's power of seeing must have been very great. And -besides this advantage, it had the same faculty as is possessed by the -golden eagle, the turtle, the tortoise, and the lizard, of pressing the -eye forward to render it more convex. In man and most animals, the eye -is placed in a fixed cavity of thin bone, something like an egg-cup, -but in the Icthyosaurus, the cavity was formed by several bones not -quite touching each other; (as you may see in the last cut, and in -figure 2, you have two of the bones by themselves, taken out of the -socket of the eye;) and there were muscles to draw these bones closer -together; so that by making the cup less deep, the eye was thrust -forward and made to swell out in the middle. This is illustrated in -the ball _b_, which is pressed outwards, by drawing the plates of bone -_cc_, together at _o_, close than those which have the ball _a_ between -them. - -[Illustration] - -You must have seen that the more convex magnifying glasses are, the -more they magnify, and the nearer you must hold them to the object you -are looking at. By this contrivance, the eye of the Icthyosaurus could -be made at pleasure into a microscope, so as to see with wonderful -quickness things which were quite close to it, by pushing it forward -and rendering it more convex; or it could be made into a telescope like -the eyes of some persons who are long-sighted, for seeing what is at a -greater distance, by drawing it back. - -In all these particulars you may see how the skill of man leads him -to adopt the same plans to produce the same ends in the works of -art, as God has adopted before him in the works of nature, without -his being conscious of copying them; and this should remind you that -man was created in the image of his Maker. If man had never made a -carriage-spring, or a diagonal bracing, he would not have understood -the structure of the jaw of the Icthyosaurus; and if he had never -invented the telescope, he would not have been able to explain the -construction of the eye. - -You have now seen the points in which the Icthyo-saurus chiefly -resembled a crocodile or lizard; from which the latter half of its name -is derived, _saurus_, _a lizard_. I must now tell you something of -those parts in which it is like a fish, from which it takes the other -part of its name, _icthy_, for _icthus_, a fish. - -You know that crocodiles live a good part of their time on land, and -they therefore have feet and a back-bone like land animals, which -enable them to walk better, but do not allow them to swim so well as -fish. The back-bone is heavy and firm, and each of the bones composing -it has one side slightly hollow, and the other side swelling out to -fit into the hollow in the one that comes next to it. But in fish both -sides of the bones are hollow, and they are joined together by gristle, -as you can easily see in the fish that are commonly eaten; this renders -the back-bone much more flexible and lighter, and therefore better -adapted for an animal always swimming. That of the Icthyosaurus was -formed in the same manner, and we therefore judge that he spent his -whole life in the water; for a back-bone so formed, would not have been -able to support such a great heavy body when walking on the land. - -The fins, or paddles, were very curious, and much like those of the -whale; they consisted of above a hundred small bones strongly united -together, in a sort of pavement enclosed in a strong skin, and not -divided into toes, as you may observe in this representation of the -entire skeleton. - -[Illustration] - -You may see many specimens of the skeleton itself in the British -Museum. - -The Icthyosaurus was a great tyrant, and used to prey on every creature -that came within his reach; this is known by the fossil remains -found in the inside of his body. He used at times even to act the -cannibal, and eat his own relations, for a large one has been dug out -of the cliff at Lyme Regis, with part of a small one in his stomach -undigested; he must have been altogether a very unamiable character. -But as his family has been so long extinct, and we are told that we -ought to say nothing but what is good concerning the dead, I shall not -say any more about him, leaving you to form your own conclusions from -what I have related to you. - - -THE PLESIOSAURUS. - -Those still more strange looking animals with very long necks, which -are represented swimming in the water, have been named _Plesiosauri_, a -word signifying, _related to_, or _closely resembling_, a lizard. There -are some nearly perfect specimens in the British Museum, and this is a -representation made up by taking the uninjured parts of several, so as -to make up a perfect whole. - -[Illustration] - -Taking it altogether, there is not one of the fossil animals so much -unlike anything at present known to exist. Its usual length was from 9 -to 15 feet, but it was at times very much larger. - -The head was much shorter in proportion than that of the Icthyosaurus, -being more like that of the guana, the lizard which people eat in the -West Indies. The neck must have been longer than that of any living -animal, not even excepting the swan; it contained thirty-three bones, -or _vertebræ_, while the whole of the rest of the back-bone in the body -and tail, contained only fifty-seven. - -The faces of these vertebræ were nearly flat, and not hollow like those -of the Icthyosaurus, which would better enable the animal to exist on -land, and it appears to have moved about in the same manner as seals -do. From some very ingenious observations on certain parts of its -anatomy, (which if I were to endeavour to explain to you, you would not -understand, unless you possessed a great deal of anatomical knowledge,) -naturalists have supposed that it used to change the colour of its skin -like the chameleon. Its paddles were almost exactly like those of the -turtle, and its body was something of the same shape, but not quite so -wide. - -From its long neck, which, although it was strengthened by the solid -joints and peculiar shapes of the bones, was not very strong, and -its small head and jaws, the Plesiosaurus could not have been near a -match for its neighbour, the Icthyosaurus, in combat, even when the -individuals were of the same size; neither would its form adapt it for -cutting through the water so quickly. It must, therefore, no doubt, -have often fallen a prey to that voracious monster. Perhaps, however, -it often played him a trick when he was pursuing it by running on shore -out of his reach; or it might mostly have kept out of his way in very -shallow water amongst the rushes and reeds, where it could every now -and then dart its long neck like a swan, down at the little fish that -came near it; or else suddenly reaching aloft into the air, it may have -seized upon some unlucky insect, or Pterodactyle, (a sort of bat of -which I shall presently speak) and then laid down as quiet under the -rushes as if nothing had happened, waiting for its next mouthful. - - -THE PTERODACTYLE. - -That odd-looking creature which is flying in the air over the heads of -the Plesiosauri, has been called the Pterodactyle, which signifies -_wing-fingered_. There were several varieties, of different sizes and -figures, from that of a snipe to that of a raven. The most remarkable -of them was indeed a curious creature, and so you will say if you look -at the picture of his skeleton. - -[Illustration] - -He was more like a bat in his general shape and habits, than anything -else we know of, but was very different in a great many respects. - -He had a head like a lizard, with a long snout and sharp teeth; his -ribs were round and thread-like, not flat like those of birds and bats; -his eyes were large; and his wings like a bat's, being a membrane or -skin, stretched out by one very long toe on each of his fore-feet. In -order to support his long head, there were strong cords running down -each side of the vertebræ of his neck, such as are found in some modern -birds, as is known by the forms of the bones to which the ends of them -were attached. His toes ended in sharp claws, and he had also claws at -his two principal joints, so that he could catch hold of the branches -of trees with them, as bats do. These creatures used principally to -feed upon large dragon flies, beetles, and the other insects, of which -the remains are found, and some of which are represented in the picture. - -There were also living at the same time with these creatures, several -kinds of tortoises, and fish in immense varieties. The whole district -where the south coast of England now is, seems to have then been a -marsh with no vegetation but sea-weeds, reeds, and the like; and its -only inhabitants were, fish, reptiles, and insects. - -After the races of animals which we have mentioned, became extinct, -a period followed in which they were succeeded by some monstrous -creatures, like lizards in all respects, except that they were fitted -to live in the water by the construction of their back-bone, their -having lungs of the same kind as those of fishes, and the possession of -fins. One of these, called the Iguanodon, was sometimes seventy feet -long. It had a little horn near the end of its snout, placed something -like the horn of a rhinoceros, and must have borne considerable -resemblance in its general form to the guana, which I mentioned before. -Their bones and teeth, are found at Lewes, in Sussex, and in the Isle -of Wight, where you may pick them up on the shore, as you can the bones -of Icthyosauri and Plesiosauri, at Lyme Regis, though not in such great -numbers. - -We are indebted for a great deal of what I have told you about the -animals that once lived where Dorsetshire is now, to a lady, Miss -Anning, who spends nearly her whole time in collecting fossils out of -the cliffs. No one ought to go near Lyme Regis without visiting her -collection. - -[Illustration: PLATE II. - -EXTINCT ANIMALS.] - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -WHAT SORT OF A PLACE ONCE EXISTED WHERE THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF PARIS IS -NOW. - - -I shall show you a picture representing a state of things much more -like the present, than the one we looked at before. It existed at a -later period, though still a great many years ago; and if you wish to -know why we conclude it to be later, since it is the other side of -the water and we are therefore prevented from distinctly tracing the -succession of the strata, I will tell you. - -After leaving the formations of Dorsetshire, in which the great -_saurian_ or lizard-like reptiles are found, we come to chalk in -Hampshire and the Isle of Wight; and after the chalk, to some beds of -clay, and then some beds of limestone. The formations above the chalk, -are those called _tertiary_; those from the chalk down to the lowest -containing animal and vegetable remains, are the _secondary_; and all -below that, consisting mainly of various sorts of granite, are the -_primary_. - -Now all this occurs in the same order in France, and the neighbourhood -of Paris consisting of tertiary formations, just corresponds with -the tertiary strata of the Isle of Wight, and them we know to be -more recent than the secondary formations of Dorsetshire. Of course, -therefore, the animals found at Paris, must be more recent than those -found at Lyme Regis. - -The largest of the animals represented in the plate, is called the -Palæotherium. - -The following is a picture of his skeleton, as it has been made out, -bone by bone. A single tooth was first discovered, and the French -naturalist, Cuvier, was able to determine from this alone, a great many -particulars which have now been proved by the subsequent discovery -of the bones; such was the knowledge he had acquired by comparing -the bones of different animals. He thus discovered that a certain -shape of tooth always accompanied a certain shape of foot, as well as -indicated what kind of food the animal lived upon. From this might be -judged a great deal about the organs of digestion, and the internal -structure, and something of its habits and disposition. In all these -points and several others, Cuvier predicted from a single bone of the -Palæotherium, what has been exactly confirmed by the entire skeleton. - -[Illustration] - -It was about the size of a small horse, and must have possessed a -little trunk, or proboscis, like the modern Tapir, to which indeed it -must have borne a great resemblance. - -[Illustration: American Tapir.] - -The reason for thinking that it had a trunk, is because there is a -peculiar contrivance in the bones to give strength to the neck, which -only exists in animals that have a proboscis. There are some Tapirs in -the Zoological Gardens, and if you have seen them, you will be able to -form a pretty good notion of what the Palæotherium must have been. It -had perhaps rather more of the hog about it, than the Tapir has, with a -more dull heavy expression of countenance. - -There were three varieties of Palæotherium distinguished by their size. -The smallest was not much larger than a little dog, and you may see the -figure of one of them in the picture, going down to the water to drink. - -The more slender animal, which is walking towards the water, is the -Anoplotherium, or un-armed beast. Its size varied from that of a hare, -to that of a large dog; it had a very thick tail like that of the -Kangaroo. Everything about it would lead one to suppose that it was a -timid creature, whose swiftness and agility would protect it against -stronger animals; not unlike in disposition to the antelope, or the -hare of our times. - -Another animal was living at the same period, which I must describe -to you, as it was, as far as we know, the largest quadruped that ever -lived upon the earth, and in some respects the most remarkable. It was -called the Dinotherium, or _terrible wild beast_, and you will soon -know how well it deserved this name. The individual of which a part of -the head is now in the British Museum, must have been eighteen feet -long in the body, and proportionally large! If you compare this size -with that of the largest elephant you have ever seen, you will be able -to form some notion of his enormous magnitude. - -In his general form he somewhat resembled the Tapirs, but by no means -so nearly as did the Palæotherium. He had a much longer trunk; and his -shoulder blade is formed like that of the mole, by which we know that -he must have used his feet in digging. It seems almost certain that -he was amphibious: and the back part of his skull has a remarkable -similarity to that of the whale, and cetaceous fishes in general. -But the most striking peculiarity in the bones which remain of this -monster, is the existence of two large tusks bending down from the -lower jaw, like two hooks, as you may see represented in this cut, of -the head preserved in the Museum. His legs were probably rather short, -and might have borne nearly the same proportion to his body, as those -of the Hippopotamus do to his. From all we can collect, this must have -been his general form and appearance. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - -There can be but little doubt that he was of a savage disposition and -lead a sulky sort of life divided between the water and the land, like -the Hippopotamus. His great tusks must have rendered him a formidable -enemy; but as we know that he was a digging animal, it is very likely -that he more frequently used them as a sort of pickaxe, to grub up -such roots as he wanted to eat, for he lived wholly upon vegetables. -He might also have employed them (as Dr. Buckland has conjectured), to -stick into the banks of rivers to support his head above water, and to -anchor himself so as not to be carried down by the stream, while his -huge body lay in his favourite element: or it does not seem unlikely -that he might at times have hooked them on to the lower boughs of -trees, to sustain himself while he plucked down from above the fruit -and foliage with his trunk. - -His bones have been found in various parts of France, Germany and -Austria. - -When these animals were living, the climate must have been very -much warmer than it is at present in France, for their bones are -found associated with palm trees, and other vegetable remains of hot -climates, and the bones of crocodiles, tortoises, and other creatures -which only live in warm regions. The isle of Sheppey consists chiefly -of land which was deposited about the same time, and it contains -a great quantity of fossil coffee, and similar plants at present -restricted to the East and West Indies, and countries near the equator. - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -OF GREAT CAVERNS IN ENGLAND, AND GERMANY, CONTAINING BONES OF WILD -ANIMALS. - - -In several parts of England there are great caverns in limestone and -other rocks, which contain an immense quantity of the bones of such -animals as are now found only in wild countries with warm climates. -One of the most celebrated of these caves, is that of Kirkdale, in -Yorkshire. Of the bones which most of them contain, three-fourths and -upwards belong to bears, of a sort no longer to be found in the living -state. One-half, or perhaps two-thirds, of the remaining fourth, have -been traced to a species of hyæna, which is also unknown at the present -day. A smaller number may be referred to a sort of tiger or lion, and -to some species of the wolf or dog family. The smallest specimens are -of various small flesh-eating animals, such as the fox, the polecat, -and other kindred species. There are also in some of them bones of the -Elephant, Rhinoceros, and Hippopotamus. - -[Illustration: PLATE III. - -CAVE OF GAYLENREUTH] - -But the largest and most remarkable of these caves, is at Gaylenreuth, -in Germany, of which the picture represents a section. You will -understand this representation, if you read the following account of it -by Dr. Buckland, the Professor of Geology, in the University of Oxford. - -"The first grotto turns to the right, and is upwards of 80 feet long. -It is divided into four parts by the unequal heights of the vaulted -roof; the first three are from 15 to 20 feet high; whereas, the fourth -is only from 4 to 5. On the bottom of this part, and on a level with -the floor, there is an orifice only two feet high, which leads into -the second grotto. This runs first southward for 60 feet, being 40 -wide and 18 high; it then turns to the west through a space of 70 feet, -becoming gradually lower till its altitude is only 5 feet. The passage -to the third grotto is very incommodious, winding through several -corridors. It is thirty feet wide, and only five or six high. The loam -of the floor is stuffed full of teeth and jaw-bones. Near the entrance -to it, is a gulf of 15 or 20 feet, into which visitors descend by a -ladder. After going down, they arrive at a vault 15 feet diameter by -30 feet in height; and on the side on which they descend, is a grotto -all bestrewed with bones. By going down a little further still, they -fall in with a new arcade which conducts to a grotto 40 feet long, and -a new gulf 18 or 20 feet deep. Even after this descent, another cavern -presents itself 40 feet high, quite covered with bones. A passage now -of 5 feet by 7 leads to a grotto 25 feet long and 12 wide; then alleys, -20 feet long, conduct into another cave 20 feet high; and finally, -a grand grotto expands, 83 feet in width, and 24 in height, more -copiously furnished with bones than any of the rest. The sixth and -last grotto runs in a northerly direction, so that the whole series of -caverns and corridors, describes nearly a semicircle. - -"A rift in the third grotto, disclosed in 1784, a new grotto, 15 feet -long by 4 wide, where the greatest number of hyænas' and lions' bones -were found. The opening was much too narrow to have allowed these -animals to have entered by it. A peculiar tunnel which terminated in -this small grotto, afforded an incredible number of bones, and large -skulls quite entire." - -It is supposed that these caves were inhabited by the fierce animals -whose bones they contain, and that the other more peaceable creatures -were dragged in by them for prey, since their bones have evidently been -gnawed and crushed as they would be by fierce and powerful carnivorous -animals. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -OF OTHER ANIMALS THAT ONCE LIVED IN ENGLAND AND ELSEWHERE. - - -THE ELEPHANT. - -I have before mentioned to you the bones of Elephants, as occurring in -the bone caverns; they were, however, not just like the Elephants now -living in Africa and Asia. The tusks seem to have been larger, and the -head not quite so broad and blunt; the teeth were also different. - -There are not perhaps many counties in England in which some of these -remains have not been found, and generally not far below the surface of -the soil. About London, and at Woolwich in particular, a great many -specimens of the fossil tusks have been collected; they are chiefly of -about the consistency of chalk, but if you break them across and look -at the end, you can see the grain of the ivory, just as you do on a -billiard-ball, or at the end of a knife-handle. - -Before anatomy was understood so well as it is at present, the bones of -the Elephant, and those of several other large extinct animals, were -confounded together under the name of Mammoth. There is a remarkable -account of the discovery of what was at the time called a Mammoth, (but -which was, doubtless, an Elephant,) imbedded in ice in Siberia, which -I shall relate to you, as it is very well written and of undoubted -veracity. - -"In the year 1799, a Tungusian fisherman observed a strange shapeless -mass projecting from an ice-bank, near the mouth of a river in the -north of Siberia, the nature of which he did not understand, and which -was so high in the bank as to be beyond his reach. He next year -observed the same object, which was then rather more disengaged from -among the ice; but was still unable to conceive what it was. Towards -the end of the following summer, 1801, he could distinctly see that -it was the frozen carcass of an enormous animal, the entire flank of -which, and one of its tusks, had become disengaged from the ice. In -consequence of the ice beginning to melt earlier, and to a greater -degree than usual, in 1803, the fifth year of this discovery, the -enormous carcass became entirely disengaged, and fell down from the -ice-crag on a sand-bank, forming part of the coast of the Arctic Ocean. -In the month of March of that year, the Tungusian carried away the two -tusks, which he sold for fifty rubles, about fifteen pounds sterling. - -"Two years afterwards this animal still remained on the sand-bank where -it had fallen from the ice; but its body was then greatly mutilated. -The peasants had taken away considerable quantities of its flesh -to feed their dogs; and the wild animals, particularly the white -bears, had also feasted on the carcass; yet the skeleton remained -quite entire, except that one of the fore-legs was gone. The entire -spine, the pelvis, one shoulder-blade, and three legs, were still -held together by their ligaments, and by some remains of the skin; -and the other shoulder-blade was found at a short distance. The head -remained, covered by the dried skin, and the pupil of the eyes was -still distinguishable. The brain also remained within the skull, but -a good deal shrunk and dried up; and one of the ears was in excellent -preservation, still retaining a tuft of strong bristly hair. The upper -lip was a good deal eaten away, and the under lip was entirely gone, so -that the teeth were distinctly seen. The animal had a long mane on its -neck. - -"The skin was extremely thick and heavy, and so much of it remained -as required the exertions of ten men to carry away, which they did -with considerable difficulty. More than thirty pounds' weight of the -hair and bristles of this animal were gathered from the wet sand-bank, -having been trampled into the mud by the white bears, while devouring -the carcass. The hair was of three distinct kinds; one consisting of -stiff black bristles, a foot or more in length; another of thinner -bristles, or coarse flexible hair, of a reddish-brown colour; and the -third of a coarse reddish-brown wool, which grew among the roots of the -hair. These afford an undeniable proof that this animal had belonged -to a race of elephants inhabiting a cold region, with which we are now -unacquainted, and by no means fitted to live in the torrid zone. It is -also evident that this enormous animal must have been frozen up by the -ice at the moment of its death." - - -THE GIGANTIC ELK. - -There are frequently found in the peat bogs of England and Ireland, the -bones and horns of a large Elk, called the gigantic Elk, and sometimes -the Irish Elk. - -[Illustration: PLATE IV. - -MEGATHERIUM GIGANTIC ELK] - -Here is a picture of him; and you may judge how well he was entitled to -his name, when I tell you that some pairs of his horns have been found, -which measured nearly twelve feet across from tip to tip. He must -have been considerably larger than the Wapiti Deer in the Zoological -Gardens, and of quite a different form. - -It is not known when these creatures became extinct; but it is probable -that it may have been since Britain has been inhabited by man. - - -THE MEGATHERIUM. - -The bones of this great beast were first found at Buenos Ayres in South -America, and a skeleton nearly complete was sent home from thence by -the Governor to the Royal Cabinet of Madrid, in 1789. They were found -in loose soil, and must apparently have belonged to nearly the same age -as the Fossil Elephant and Irish Elk. - -The head must have been very much like that of the sloth, but it seems -to have possessed the addition of a small trunk like the Palæotherium I -told you of just now. The structure of its legs (and in particular its -very strong short thigh-bone, which is much stouter than that of any -animal living,) shows that it must have moved very slowly. - -Its teeth show that it lived on vegetables, and the great ungainly -fore-feet, armed with tremendous claws, would lead one to suppose that -it used to dig in the ground for roots, and tear down the branches of -trees. - -It appears to have been covered with a thick shell or coating, thicker -than the hide of a rhinoceros, and rather resembling the covering of -the armadillo. I have seen a piece of this wonderful coat of armour in -the Museum at Paris, which was found along with the skeleton in South -America. - -If one might decide from its likeness to other animals in its various -parts, it was a sulky beast, and, if it could have spoken, would only -have said to its neighbours, "Let me alone--I want nothing of you, if -you want nothing of me." - -Its length was full 13 feet, and its height about 9 feet; so you may -suppose armed, and defended as it was, there was not much chance of -other animals being disposed to meddle with it, for it must have been -big enough and strong enough to take good care of itself, though it -could not run very fast. - - -THE BEAVER. - -You will, perhaps, be surprised to hear that Beavers once lived in -England; but it is known from history, that they were found in Wales -as late as the twelfth century. I have got the bones of some, that -were given me by a countryman, who picked them out of a peat bog in -Hampshire, without knowing what they were. They were buried close by -some hazel nuts, and some moss that had not lost its colour, and was -in no degree decayed; such is the great power possessed by certain -minerals that exist in these peat bogs, to preserve things from decay, -even during a period which could hardly be less than a thousand years. - -It is related, that the foot of a lady, which seemed quite fresh, -was found in peat, where it had lain in contact with some of these -substances, with a sandal of a kind that must have been worn many -hundreds of years ago. And though I will not assert that it is true, -yet I will say, that it is very likely to be so, from what I have seen -myself, in regard to nuts, and moss, and various weeds. - - -THE DODO. - -When the Dutch in the 16th century, took possession of the Isle of -France, now called Mauritius, which up to that time had not been -inhabited by man, they found a large bird something of the Duck kind, -of which they sent home specimens and representations. They called it -the Dodo, but why, I cannot tell you. - -The race has now become extinct, so that many naturalists have declared -that it never existed, and that the account of it was naughtily -invented, and sent home for the gratification and delusion of - - "Those who greedily pursue - Things wonderful instead of true." - -But there is not the least doubt of its being a fact, for in the Museum -in London there is a painting said to have been taken from the living -bird; there is also a leg and a plaster cast of the head placed near -the painting, which naturalists have determined could not have belonged -to any other animal known, from their peculiar construction; there is -also another foot and the head from which the cast was taken, preserved -in the Museum of the University of Oxford, being the remains of an -entire specimen which was kept in the collection of curiosities made -by Elias Ashmole, Esq. till it rotted. This is representation of these -two valuable relics. - -[Illustration] - -The account of the removal of the bones was entered in the records of -the University, and the date is the 1st January, 1755. - -More recently some of the bones have been found in the Mauritius, and -have been sent to Paris, where I have heard they may be seen now. - -It seems to have been the most unwieldy and inactive bird in existence, -and to have held nearly the same kind of place among feathered animals -as the sloth does among beasts. The body was very massive, and almost -round, and seemed to be stuck upon two short thick legs like pillars. -The tail was strangely out of its place, according to the usual form -of birds; and two little caricatures of wings were hung upon its great -blank sides. A thick pursy neck supported the head, which consisted -of two enormous chaps that opened far behind the eyes. You will best -understand the form of the bill by looking at the cut copied from the -painting which I mentioned before, and you may there see how like a -monk's cowl the feathers of his head looked. - -[Illustration] - -Some of the Dutch who met with this bird in its own country called -it the nauseous bird, and declared that its flesh was intolerably -disagreeable to the taste; while others asserted that it was very good -eating, and that about three Dodos would feast a hundred men. But -whatever may have been the quality of the flesh, I do not believe what -the latter said of its quantity, for the head and leg which I have -seen, and which appear to have belonged to a full grown bird, are not -very much larger than those of a swan. - -However this is now a question which of course will never be certainly -decided, as there are no more of them to be eaten. It appears that, -like the beavers and wolves in England, the progress of man and -cultivation deprived them of their sources of sustenance. - -If we may judge of what his character was, from his appearance, he -must have been a silly, voracious creature, with hardly any power of -resistance or flight. However, like all the rest of God's works, he was -no doubt adapted for the circumstances in which he was placed, and had -enough means of enjoyment, to make it well worth his while to live as -long as he could. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -PARLEY DESCRIBES VOLCANOES, EARTHQUAKES, AND HOT SPRINGS. - - -You have no doubt often heard of Volcanoes and Earthquakes, for almost -everybody in all ages has felt a deep interest in them, and a curiosity -to know what they are caused by. If you will listen to me, while I -merely describe them as they really exist, without "drawing the long -bow," as people say, I will then tell you how I think they are produced. - -It is quite certain that there is an important connexion between -Volcanoes and Earthquakes; and we may safely take this for granted, and -at once call the cause of both, whatever it may be, _volcanic agency_. - -It has been discovered by extensive observations, that this agency -does not exert itself in individual spots, so as to produce here a -Volcano and there an Earthquake; but its operations take place over -long tracts of country in which the Volcanoes are placed, and, in the -spaces between them, Earthquakes are more or less frequent. - -These tracts are called Volcanic bands; one of them extends nearly -parallel with the West Coast of South America, along the chain of -mountains called the Andes, which you will see marked on the map; and -another much smaller extends from Mount Vesuvius to Mount Etna, with -the Volcanic Island Stromboli, and several extinct Volcanoes lying -between them, and then turns to the East, through several of the Greek -Islands, and passes on to Syria, where Earthquakes are frequent. - -Earthquakes in their simplest form are nothing more than violent -shakings of the ground; but sometimes the earth is split open; -sometimes it is raised; and sometimes it is depressed. - -I shall tell you of some of the changes which took place in the great -Earthquake of Calabria, which lies in the smaller volcanic band I -mentioned to you between Vesuvius and Etna. - - -EARTHQUAKE OF CALABRIA. - -The shocks began in 1783, and lasted for nearly four years, till the -end of 1786. During this time the King of Naples sent persons to take -correct notes and representations of all that was going on, and we -have therefore got a better account of it than we have of any other -Earthquake that ever occurred. - -The convulsion of the earth, sea, and air, extended as far as Naples, -and over the whole of Sicily; but the district over which it was so -violent as to excite intense alarm, was about five hundred miles in -circumference. - -"The first shock of February 5th, 1783, threw down, in two minutes, -the greater part of the houses in all the cities, towns, and villages, -from the western sides of the Apennines in Calabria Ultra, to Messina -in Sicily, and convulsed the whole surface of the country. Another -occurred on the 28th of March, with almost equal violence. The chain of -granite mountains which passes through Calabria from north to south, -and attains the height of many thousand feet, was shaken but slightly; -but it is said that a great part of the shocks which were spread with -a wave-like motion through the recent strata from west to east, became -very violent when they reached the point of junction with the granite, -as if a reaction was produced where the wave-like movement of the soft -strata was suddenly arrested by the more solid rocks. The surface of -the country often heaved like the billows of a swelling sea, which -produced a swimming in the head like sea-sickness. It is particularly -stated, in almost all the accounts, that just before each shock the -clouds appeared motionless; and although no explanation is offered of -this phenomenon, it is obviously the same as that observed in a ship -at sea when it pitches violently. The clouds seem arrested in their -career as often as the vessel rises in a direction contrary to their -course; so that the Calabrians must have experienced precisely the same -motion on the land." - -At Messina in Sicily, the shore was rent; and the soil along the port, -which before the shock was perfectly level, was inclined towards the -sea, and the sea itself was considerably deeper, which showed that the -inclination must have been occasioned by the bottom's sinking. The quay -also sunk down 14 inches below the level of the sea, and the houses in -the neighbourhood were much cracked. - -In one town there was a large round tower of great strength, which was -divided by a perpendicular rent, and one-half was raised up several -feet, so as to show the foundations. Those who saw it, said that it -looked like a great tooth half extracted, showing the fangs. Along the -line of the crack, the walls were found to fit so exactly together, -that you would not have known they had even been divided if the courses -of the stones had not been disturbed. - -[Illustration] - -There was a very curious difference between some of the walls which -had been thrown down, or very much shaken by some of the shocks. In -some of them, the separate stones were parted from the mortar, so as to -leave an exact mould where they had rested; and in others, the mortar -was ground to dust between the stones. It was not less strange to see -the effect of what must have been whirling movements in the ground. -In some streets, one house would be thrown down, and leave the rest -uninjured; while in others, all the houses but one were thrown down, -and that one remained firm and unmoved. Two obelisks were twisted -round, so that the stones of which they were composed, stood at cross -purposes. This cut represents one of the two, as it stood after the -earthquake, and before. - -[Illustration] - -"It appears evident that a great part of the rending and splitting of -the ground was the effect of a violent motion from below upwards; and -in a multitude of cases where the rents and chasms opened and closed -alternately, we must suppose that the earth was by turns heaved up, -and then let fall again. We may conceive the same effect to be produced -on a small scale, if, by some mechanical force, a pavement composed -of large flags of stone should be raised up and then allowed to fall -suddenly, so as to resume its original position. If any small pebbles -happened to be lying on the line of contact of two flags, they would -fall into the opening when the pavement rose, and be swallowed up, so -that no trace of them would appear after the subsidence of the stones. -In the same manner, when the earth was upheaved, large houses, trees, -cattle, and men were engulfed in an instant in chasms and fissures; and -when the ground sunk down again, the earth closed upon them, so that -no vestige of them was discoverable on the surface. In many instances -individuals were swallowed up by one shock, and then thrown out alive, -together with large jets of water, by the shock which immediately -succeeded." - -The district called Jerocarne, was torn in a surprising manner, and in -one spot the cracks resembled those in a starred pane of glass; and as -these cracks remained open when the earthquake was over, it seemed as -if the middle had been permanently lifted up. - -[Illustration] - -"In the vicinity of Oppido, the central point from which the earthquake -diffused its violent movements, many houses were swallowed up by the -yawning earth, which closed immediately over them. In the adjacent -district also of Cannamaria, four farm-houses, several oil-stores, -and some spacious dwelling-houses were so completely engulphed in one -chasm, that no vestige of them was afterwards discernible." - -Amongst the many fissures that were opened, there was one, a mile long, -a hundred feet wide, and thirty feet deep; and another, three quarters -of a mile long, one hundred and fifty feet wide, and one hundred feet -deep; and a third, about a quarter of a mile long, which was two -hundred and twenty-five feet deep. - -A mountain was cleft completely in two; and a lake of considerable size -was formed by the opening of this great chasm, and springs bursting -out at the bottom. The inhabitants of the neighbourhood were afraid -that the pool of nearly stagnant water which was thus formed would -injure their health, and were at great expense in trying to drain it; -but it was all in vain, for the springs that fed it at the bottom were -inexhaustible. - -A great mass of earth, or hill, two hundred feet high, and four hundred -feet in diameter, was moved nearly four miles out of its place, with -trees growing upon it; and another similar mass, with a house on it, -which was not at all injured. Some olive and mulberry trees travelled -a full mile. These great movements were aided by springs under the -masses of earth, which made a slimy sort of road for them; and, of -course, the whole distance was down hill. - -"Great agitation was frequently observed in the bed of the sea during -the shocks, and, on those parts of the coast where the movement was -most violent, all kinds of fish were taken in greater abundance, and -with much greater facility. Some rare species, which usually lie buried -in the sand, were taken on the surface of the waters in great quantity. -The sea is said to have boiled up near Messina, and to have been -agitated as if by a copious discharge of vapours from its bottom. The -Prince of Scilla had persuaded a great part of his vassals to betake -themselves to their fishing-boats for safety, and he himself had gone -on board. On the night of the 5th of February, when some of the people -were sleeping in the boats, and others on a level plain, slightly -elevated above the sea, the earth rocked, and suddenly a great mass -was torn from the contiguous Mount Jaci, and thrown down with a -dreadful crash upon the plain. Immediately afterwards, the sea rising -thirty palms above the level of this low tract, rolled foaming over it, -and swept away the multitude. It then retreated, but soon rushed back -again with greater violence, bringing with it some of the people and -animals it had carried away. At the same time every boat was sunk or -dashed against the beach, and some of them were swept far inland. The -aged Prince, with one thousand four hundred and thirty of his people, -was destroyed. The number of persons who perished during the earthquake -is estimated at about forty thousand, and about twenty thousand more -died by diseases which were caused by insufficient nourishment, -exposure to the atmosphere, and malaria, arising from the new stagnant -lakes and pools. By far the greater number were buried under the ruins -of their houses; while some were burnt to death in the conflagrations -which almost invariably followed the shocks, and consumed immense -magazines of oil and other provisions. A small number were engulfed -in chasms and fissures, and their skeletons are perhaps buried in the -earth to this day, at the depth of several hundred feet, for such was -the profundity of some of the openings which did not close in again." - -There is a fine description of the Earthquake and this melancholy -result, in Cowper's Task, which we shall quote. - - Alas for Sicily! rude fragments now - Lie scatter'd where the shapely column stood. - Her palaces are dust. In all her streets - The voice of singing and the sprightly chord - Are silent. Revelry, and dance, and show - Suffer a syncope and solemn pause; - While God performs upon the trembling stage - Of his own works his dreadful part alone. - The rocks fall headlong, and the valleys rise, - The rivers die into offensive pools, - And charged with putrid verdure, breathe a gross - And mortal nuisance into all the air. - What solid was, by transformation strange, - Grows fluid; and the fix'd and rooted earth, - Tormented into billows, heaves and swells, - Or with vortiginous and hideous whirl - Sucks down its prey insatiable. Immense - The tumult and the overthrow, the pangs - And agonies of human and of brute - Multitudes, fugitive on every side, - And fugitive in vain. The sylvan scene - Migrates uplifted; and, with all its soil - Alighting in far distant fields, finds out - A new possessor, and survives the change. - Ocean has caught the frenzy, and upwrought - To an enormous and o'erbearing height, - Not by a mighty wind, but by that voice - Which winds and waves obey, invades the shore - With force resistless. Where now the throng, - That press'd the beach, and, hasty to depart, - Look'd to the sea for safety? They are gone, - Gone with the refluent wave into the deep-- - A prince with half his people! - -You will find a great many other astonishing effects of this Earthquake -described in Mr. Lyell's Work on Geology, from which I have extracted -some parts of the preceding account. - - -VOLCANOES. - -The word Volcano comes from Vulcan, the name of the God of fire in the -Greek mythology. You have read how the poets used to represent him as -engaged underground in forging thunderbolts for Jupiter, and other -work of the same kind, with the assistance of his one-eyed journeymen -the Cyclopes. They feigned that Volcanoes were the chimneys of his -workshops, and that when an eruption took place he was busy forging his -iron. - -Others pretended that when Jupiter had overcome the giants named -Titans, who had rebelled against him, instead of putting them in the -stocks, he placed mountains upon them, and that when the imprisoned -monsters turned themselves from one side to the other, earthquakes and -eruptions were the consequence. - -However, we don't believe any of these stories now, neither perhaps did -the ancients. But you must learn all about them and their meaning, -(where they have any,) from your schoolmaster. My business now is to -tell you what Volcanoes are. - -They are openings in the surface of the earth, from whence ignited -matter of various kinds, smoke, and ashes, are sent forth by some -subterranean agency. - -For the most part they do not always keep in activity, but have long -intervals of rest for months, and sometimes for very many years, -between the eruptions. - -One of the few that always keeps in eruption, is Stromboli, one of the -Lipari Islands off the coast of Sicily, which there is good reason to -think, has been active for nearly 1600 years. This Volcano is merely -a mountain or rock, standing out of the sea, and the melted matter, -that occasionally runs down its sides, flows directly into the water, -and at once kills and parboils the fish that happen to be near it, and -they are thus sometimes taken and eaten by the poor fishermen who live -about the base of the mountain. - -The way in which an eruption takes place in a Volcano of the other -kind, when it has been quiet for a long time, is as follows. - -Great noises are heard about the foot of the mountain, and earthquakes -frequently occur for several days before any change is seen in the -opening or _crater_, as it is called. The springs in the neighbourhood -often disappear, and as you may suppose all these forebodings make the -people who live near gloomy enough. - -After a time a dreadful burst takes place, and the crater is in an -instant cleared of the stones and earth that may have fallen into it -during the period of repose; ashes and cinders, rocks and stones, are -thrown up to an immense height in the air, and a great cloud of smoke -and steam accompanies them. - -In perfectly still weather, this vapour is seen to shape itself in -a very beautiful manner. The immense impulse from beneath sends it -up to a vast height as straight and almost as distinct as a pillar. -At a certain elevation, it spreads abroad and assumes the appearance -represented in the plate. When this occurs on Vesuvius, the Italians -call it the _pine tree cloud_, from the resemblance its form bears to -that of a pine tree. - -As the eruption goes on the cloud of smoke which is always copiously -charged with electricity, sends out brilliant lightnings; its form -becomes disturbed, and the dark volumes of vapour are angrily sent -forth in shapeless masses. Red-hot stones are sent into the air to a -stupendous height; the melted matter boils up inside the crater and -rolls down the sides of the mountain, setting fire to the trees that it -meets with, and destroying or enveloping whatever else remains in its -way. - -You will see their effect as they appear by night, in the other plate. -I should tell you that the Volcano represented in both the pictures is -Mount Vesuvius. - -[Illustration: PLATE V. - -VESUVIUS N^o. 1] - -The melted matter that boils up in the crater, and flows down the -mountain, is called Lava. I dare say most of you have seen some pieces -of this substance when polished and worked into ornaments. It is found -in great variety, and is sometimes black, porous, and light like -cinders; sometimes it consists of crystallized particles of quartz, -felspar, and other minerals, so as closely to resemble granite; and not -unfrequently it is a solid dark-coloured mass, heavy and hard as the -stone that our streets are paved with. - -It issues from the crater in a melted state, bubbling and boiling like -water in a tea-kettle, but you must not therefore suppose that it runs -down the declivity of the mountain like water. On the contrary, its -motion is mostly very slow, seldom being faster when it gets at some -distance from the crater, than four miles an hour, which is about as -fast as a man can walk. When it has run still further from its source -it does not travel more than a few yards in a day. - -The motion of a stream of Lava is very peculiar, for the surface -exposed to the air is immediately formed into a crust, and hence it -constantly moves with a crackling noise, and when the stream is quite -fresh no light is seen except in the cracks that are constantly being -formed at the extremity. - -In this way a current will sometimes go drawling on for months after -the eruption which gave rise to it has ceased. - -A very curious effect is produced when the lava runs in a certain state -of fluidity down a steep descent. A thick, strong crust forms on the -outside, and it is one of the qualities of lava when it has become -hard, like most other stony substances, to present great opposition -to the passage of heat. In consequence of this the liquid lava in the -inside of the current is kept hot, and continues to run on for a long -time after the supply from the crater has ceased, and leaves the crust -in the form of an arched passage. - -From what I have told you about lava streams, you will see that there -is not much danger from them to living creatures, who may always get -out of their way fast enough: but sometimes houses and even towns are -enveloped in them. - -[Illustration: PLATE VI. - -VESUVIUS N^o. 2] - -However, from the peculiar mode in which they travel there is often a -way of preventing this, and on one occasion it was resorted to, and -the town of Catania thereby saved. A current of lava from Mount Etna -was making its way straight towards the town, but a body of fifty bold -strong fellows went out to meet it, armed with crow bars; with these -they broke great holes in the crust at the side, and thus the stream -was turned into another course, and pursued its way on one side of the -town. - -Throughout an eruption, a great quantity of dust is produced by the -rubbing of the stones against each other which are thrown out from the -crater, and often fall back and are thrown up again several times. - -This dust is driven over a great extent of country, and a gentleman -whom I visited, who lived about fourteen miles from Mount Vesuvius, -told me that during the great eruption of 1822, his garden was covered -with them, to the depth of full six inches. - -But in more violent eruptions they are carried much further than this. -In an eruption of a Volcano in Sumbawa, an island which lies some miles -to the East of Java, the ashes were carried to a distance of 270 miles -in such quantities as to darken the air, and in another direction -they were found 300 miles off. They fell so heavily 40 miles away -from the Volcano that they broke into many houses, and rendered them -uninhabitable. - -Quantities of liquid lava are thrown upwards, and shape themselves into -nearly the forms of fish by their passage through the air. These are -called bombs by the inhabitants, and the fall of them is very justly -dreaded, as they come with great violence. - -The size of the largest of those from which the following picture was -taken, was six inches long, two inches and a quarter wide, and one -inch and three quarters thick; but there are much larger sometimes. - -[Illustration] - -If you should have a chance of examining any of these, you may observe -how wisely the living principle, which gives the figure to fish, has -been ordained by their Creator to provide the best form to assist their -motions, in a medium in which they are suspended, and do not move on -ground as the beasts do; seeing that it is precisely the same sort -of figure as the laws of inanimate matter impress upon it, when in a -yielding state, and being impelled to move under similar circumstances. - -I must give you a notion of the quantity of lava sometimes sent out in -a single eruption. - -The Volcano called Skapta Jokul, in Iceland, in the year 1794, sent -out two great streams, one of which was 50 miles in length, from 10 to -15 in breadth, and the ordinary depth about 100 feet, but in some deep -valleys it was more than 500 feet. The other was forty miles long, -seven wide on the average, and about the same depth as the first. - -These streams were not cold in the year 1805, eleven years after they -had issued from the earth, so that you may judge how long the hardened -lava keeps in the heat. - -During the eruption in which this immense mass of melted matter was -thrown out, twenty villages were destroyed, more than nine thousand -persons killed, and an immense number of cattle. - -The vapour which rises at first in immense clouds, when the eruption -slackens, or when it gets out of the reach of the heat, condenses, and -mingled with the dust thrown up with it, forms mud, which rushes in -torrents down the mountain. These streams of mud are called alluvions, -and are very much more dreaded by the inhabitants than the lava -streams, because they are so much quicker in their movement. - -It was one of these, and not a stream of lava which enveloped the -Roman City Pompeii; and which entered the modern town of Torre del -Greco, and so raised the ground that the lower rooms of the houses were -converted into cellars, and the people were obliged to make the street -doors on what had before been the second story. - - -THE GREAT VOLCANO KIRAUEA, IN THE ISLAND OF HAWAII. - -There is a very remarkable Volcano in the Island of Hawaii, where -Captain Cook was killed. - -The crater, instead of being at the top of a mountain like those of -most other Volcanoes, is a large plain, seven miles in circumference, -sunk below the surface of the surrounding country, and walled in by -rugged cliffs more than seven hundred feet high. - -On this plain there are fifty-one conical hillocks, which are almost -constantly sending out vapour and lava, and red hot stones. The -surrounding banks consist entirely of sulphur and lava. - -The islanders, before they were taught the truths of Christianity, -believed it to be the abode of their deities, the chief of whom they -call Pelé, and to her, they say, that everything which grows near the -Volcano is sacred. When some missionaries were going to visit it, and -plucked some juicy berries from the shrubs that grew there to quench -their thirst, the native guides begged them to desist till they had -made an offering to Pelé. When they got to the edge of the crater, they -threw some of the berries in, and said, "Pelé, here are your berries, -and I am now going to eat some." They then ate fast enough, and were -willing that the missionaries should do the same. - -The following are extracts from the account of our countryman, Mr. -Stewart's visit to this terrific place. - -"I can compare the general aspect of the bottom of the crater, to -nothing that will give a livelier image of it to your mind, than to -the appearance the Otsego Lake would present, if the ice with which -it is covered in winter, were suddenly broken up by a heavy storm, -and as suddenly frozen again, while large slabs and blocks were still -toppling, and dashing, and heaping against each other, with the motion -of the waves. Just so rough and distorted was the black mass under -our feet, only a hundred-fold more terrific, independently of the -innumerable cracks, fissures, deep chasms and holes, from which the -sulphureous vapour, steam, and smoke were exhaled, with a degree of -heat that testified the near vicinity of fire. - -"At an inconsiderable distance from us, was one of the largest of the -conical craters, whose laborious action had so greatly impressed our -minds during the night, and we hastened to a nearer examination of it. -On reaching its base, we judged it to be one hundred and fifty feet -high, a huge, irregularly shapen, inverted funnel of lava, covered -with clefts, orifices, and tunnels, from which bodies of steam escaped, -while pale flames, ashes, stones, and lava, were propelled with equal -force and noise, from its ragged mouth. - -"The chattering of the islanders around our cabins, and the occasional -sound of voices in protracted conversation among our own number, -had scarcely ceased long enough to admit of sound sleep, when the -volcano again began roaring and labouring with redoubled activity. -The confusion of noises was prodigiously great. These sounds were not -fixed or confined to one place, but rolled from one end of the crater -to the other; sometimes seeming to be immediately under us, when a -sensible tremor of the ground on which we lay took place; and then -again rushing to the farthest end with incalculable velocity. The whole -air was filled with the tumult; and those most soundly asleep were -quickly roused by it to thorough wakefulness. One of our party sprang -up in his cot, exclaiming, 'We shall certainly have an eruption; such -power must burst through everything;' He had barely ceased speaking, -when a dense column of heavy black smoke was seen arising from the -crater directly in front of us; the subterranean struggle ceased, -and immediately after, flames burst from a large cone, near which we -had been in the morning, and which then appeared to have been long -inactive. Red-hot stones, cinders, and ashes, were also propelled to a -great height with immense violence; and shortly after, the molten lava -came boiling up, and flowed down the sides of the cone, and over the -surrounding scoria, in two beautiful curved streams, glittering with -indiscribable brilliance. - -"At the same time a whole lake of fire opened in a more distant part. -This could not have been less than two miles in circumference; and its -action was more horribly sublime than anything I ever imagined to -exist, even in the ideal vision of unearthly things. Its surface had -all the agitation of an ocean; billow after billow tossed its monstrous -bosom in the air, and occasionally those from different directions -burst with such violence, as in the concussion to dash the fiery spray -forty and fifty feet high. It was at once the most splendidly beautiful -and dreadfully fearful of spectacles." - - -OF THE FORMATION OF NEW ISLANDS. - -You must know that most of the volcanic mountains bear evident traces -of having been built up of matter thrown out, in the first place, -from a crack or hole in the ground, and afterwards from the _crater_ -or _cup_, which would thus soon be formed. At every eruption a new -layer of dust, and cinders, and lava, is added, and thus a mountain is -gradually produced. - -In some instances, the successive layers may be seen is the crater, -as is the case with Vesuvius, of the summit of which this would nearly -represent the section, if we could cut it in two. - -[Illustration] - -Volcanic operations can go on very nearly as well at the bottom of the -sea, as upon dry land; and if you remember what I told you before, -respecting the mode in which the currents of lava flow, you will not be -much surprised to hear that their progress is not stopped by the water, -though it may be somewhat impeded. It is certain that the streams often -travel a great way at the bottom of the sea. - -When a Volcano breaks out under the sea, if the eruption send out a -sufficient quantity of lava, and stones and dust, it gets above the -surface and makes such a Volcano as Stromboli. - -If the Volcano should afterwards become quiet, then an island is the -result, and if large enough, it may be inhabited. - -A great many of the islands of the South Sea, and some of the Greek -islands, originated in this manner; and, only two or three years ago, -an island suddenly rose up off the coast of Sicily, and was taken -possession of in due form by a British captain, in the name of the king -of England; but, as the land consisted of loose earth, and had not much -lava to bind it together, it soon sunk down, and now no trace of it is -to be seen. - - -OF THE GEYSERS OF ICELAND. - -There are many Volcanoes in Iceland, and the whole island seems to have -been the produce of Volcanic agency. I am going to describe to you one -of the most singular proofs of this. - -Geysers are springs which spout out at intervals great streams of -hot water. The name is taken from the Icelandic word, _geysa_, which -signifies, _to rage_, or, _burst forth violently_. - -[Illustration: PLATE VII. - -GEYSERS OF ICELAND] - -The Icelanders are a very simple, excellent people, and exceedingly -kind and hospitable to strangers. This is not the place for me to tell -you how much kindness I experienced among them; but if I were to do -so, you would have as high a regard for them as I have. They have in -general a considerable degree of intelligence, but I was surprised to -find that a great many of them did not know where the Geysers were, or -anything about them. - -There are many springs of the same kind in several parts of Iceland; -but those that are generally known as _the Geysers_, are near the town -of Haukadal, in the south-west part of Iceland. To these I went in -company with four other persons, and a guide. - -After a dreary ride through a wild volcanic looking country, we left -our horses in a safe place, and then, proceeding some distance on foot, -we saw clouds of steam arising over the hills before us. A little -further on we got into the plain, where the Geysers are situated, which -is full of boiling springs and holes sending out steam like the valve -of a steam-boiler. - -The great Geyser is at the top of a hillock, which seems to have been -formed in the course of years by the substances which the hot water -holds in solution, and deposits as it cools. - -At the top of this mound we found a pond of the shape of a saucer, -lined with the most curious incrustations of spar, which exactly -resembled the heads of cauliflowers. It was then about half full of the -most beautiful hot water, as clear as crystal, which was just stirred -in gentle waves by the steam that rose up from the opening at the -bottom of the basin. - -We took advantage of this tranquil state of the spring, to examine this -opening. We let down a line, with a weight at the end, to the depth -of about eighty feet, and as nearly as we could judge, it went down -perpendicularly. - -The hole was nearly round, and about nine feet in diameter, but it got -gradually wider towards the top like a funnel. The inside showed the -same kind of flinty incrustation as the hillock was composed of, worn -as smooth as glass by the forcible passage of the water. The water was -then at a temperature of two hundred degrees. - -The saucer-shaped reservoir was fifty feet across, and four feet deep. - -I ought to tell you that the waters of the Geysers have a petrifying -property, and hence the ground all around them is covered with what was -once grass, moss, and sticks, converted into stone, of which we brought -away many beautiful specimens. - -It was very late in the evening when we had completed this examination, -and fixed our tent where we intended to pass the night. The springs -still continued quiet, and you may judge how impatient we were for -something to be going on. However, as it was dark, and we were very -tired, having had a great deal of fatigue during the day, we lay down -in the tent and went to sleep. - -About midnight we were suddenly called up by one of our party, to -witness the great Geyser in its full glory. It threw up several jets, -should think of at least ninety feet high, and sent off vast clouds of -steam. There was only just light enough for us to distinguish the water -and steam; but the effect was very grand, and such as we shall never -forget, though it did not leave much behind in our minds to talk about, -as everything seemed indistinct and confused. - -The next morning, as soon as it was light, there was a beautiful -eruption of the _New Geyser_, as it is called. The column of water was -eight feet in diameter, and full sixty feet high, and the clouds of -steam were prodigious. The sun was just then rising, and the effect -of his rays through the water and stream, was exquisitely beautiful, -producing many little rainbows. When the water had sunk down, its place -was taken by a tremendous jet of spray and steam, rushing out with a -deafening roar to nearly the same height as the water. - -When we threw some large stones into the pipe, the steam instantly -carried them up to an amazing height; and in several instances, when -they went up quite perpendicularly, kept them within its influence for -some minutes, throwing them upwards several times successively, in a -very strange manner; the Geyser seemed to play with them as a boy plays -with his ball when he throws it up and catches it again and again. - -We were not yet satisfied, because we had not seen an eruption fairly -from beginning to end; so we waited some time longer. At about seven -o'clock in the morning, we heard low grumbling sounds near the great -Geyser, and the water in the basin bubbled up a little more actively. - -We then had an hour and a half of anxious expectation, during which -we kept walking round the hillock; there were then about a dozen loud -reports which made the earth tremble, and the water rose to near the -top of the basin, and became so restless that many of the waves washed -over the edge. - -A little while afterwards, the reports became as loud as the firing of -artillery; the ground shook violently under our feet; we ran down the -mound, and had hardly got upon the level ground before the water rushed -up the pipe with such thick clouds of steam, as completely to conceal -the stream. These bursts took place in this manner to the height of -about twenty feet. - -There was then a rest for a few seconds, which was followed by several -jets from forty to sixty feet high; and after them a column was thrown -up eighty feet high, and ten feet in diameter. But the last jet was the -most remarkable, for it was more than ninety feet high, and lasted for -seven minutes. - -This great effort seemed to have wearied the Geyser, for the water -instantly sunk down out of the basin into the pipe, quite out of sight; -but in a few minutes it rose again to within a foot of the edge of the -basin, and then remained stationary. - -Besides the great perpendicular jets, there were many little ones -curling and twisting about in all directions; and we were taught to be -careful of these by one of my companions getting badly scalded in the -leg, for they were very sudden and uncertain in their movements. - -When we were quite sure it was all over, we tried the temperature of -the water in the basin, and found it to be twenty degrees cooler than -before the eruption, which was probably caused by the exposure of the -water which had been thrown up into the air. - -It seems there are generally about five or six eruptions of each of -the two great Geysers, within twenty-four hours. But while we were on -the spot, many of the smaller springs spouted up much oftener, and one -bustling little thing darted out its waters in all directions, three or -four times in an hour. - -We did not see any jet from the great Geyser above one hundred feet -high; but some travellers have asserted that they are at times two or -three hundred feet in height. It would appear that the force of the -Geysers varies considerably, and in some instances is affected by the -earthquakes which often happen here; some of which seem to cripple, and -others to strengthen them. - -Some of the water of the great Geyser falls over the edge of the basin -into a deep hole in the rock below, which makes a capital warm bath, -for by the time the water reaches it, it is of the desirable coolness. -I can assure you, we enjoyed a bathe in it very much indeed. - -There are several other springs in Iceland of nearly the same -character, and the most remarkable are the Hot Springs of Reykium. -The largest of these has two openings, from one of which the water -is incessantly flowing to the height of six or eight feet; the other -opening is about ten feet distant, and is surrounded by an incrusted -brim, like that of the great Geyser. The eruptions take place from this -about fifteen times in twenty-four hours, to the height of about thirty -feet, accompanied with a great deal of steam. - -There is also a most wonderful spring in Reykium, called the Badstofa. -It flows into a great cave, from the bottom of which the water keeps on -retreating and flowing like the waves of the sea, with a deep rumbling -sound for some time before the eruption, when the water rushes up to -the height of nearly twenty feet. - -About half a mile from this place, there are some Hot Springs that rise -in the bed of a river, and force themselves quite through the cold -water which covers them. - - -THE SULPHUR MOUNTAINS AND SULPHUR SPRINGS. - -There is a wonderful place in Iceland, which I am sure you would like -to hear about. It is in the south-west part of the island nearer the -sea than the Geysers. Nearly the whole region consists of sulphur, and -hot clay, and hot dirty water, and it contains some mountains, called -the _Sulphur Mountains_, from which great quantities of sulphur are -collected by the peasants, and sent to the continent of Europe for sale. - -The vapour that is always rising from this wretched-looking country, -makes a sort of crust over the hot clay; and you will sometimes come to -a spot that appears solid, and as you go over it, your horse's hoofs -will make holes which will send out steam like little cauldrons. A -gentleman who would go over one of these on foot, got terribly scalded -by the crust breaking away under him. - -There is here a sort of hut, from the bottom of which much steam rises, -and it is used as a vapour bath. People that are affected with various -diseases, come to it from the surrounding country in considerable -numbers. - -At a little distance from this you come to the brink of a cliff, and -looking over it, you see twelve large ponds or basins of black mud, -boiling, and splashing, and raging perpetually, with large volumes -of vapour rolling off their surfaces. Beyond these some dismal -black-looking mountains make a back ground. Can you imagine any thing -more fearful to look upon? - -Besides these, there is a kind of Geyser of mud, which just resembles -the real Geysers in its action; but instead of sending up beautiful -clear water, it throws out black unsightly mud, as thick as porridge, -which is caught in a nearly round reservoir of more than one hundred -feet in diameter. It is situated near the summit of a mountain called -_Krabla_ and the reservoir seems to have been in time past a volcanic -crater. - - -HOW THE GEYSERS MAY BE CAUSED. - -Of course there cannot be hot water without some source of heat, and -there must, therefore, be a source of heat taken into consideration -in the action of the Geysers. Now, I do not wish to speak of this -here, I only wish to make you understand how it seems likely that the -eruptions of the Geysers are occasioned, supposing there was a supply -of hot water. - -[Illustration] - -This cut is intended to represent what may be a section of the -subterranean reservoir, S W, of the great Geyser, and the pipe, P, -connected with the saucer-shaped basin, B, at the top of the mound. You -see the cracks in the rock through which you must suppose hot water -constantly trickling into the reservoir. - -The space S will be constantly full of steam, and the space below, W, -will be always full of water. The water will continue to rise till it -gets to A, and it will then quite stop up the escape of the steam. - -The steam in S will then press upon the surface of the water, and -force it up the pipe P with more or less violence, according to the -supply of heat; but when enough of the steam has escaped to render the -pressure less, and the water has sunk to near I, the eruption will -cease. - -If you will take the trouble to understand this section, you will see -how reasonable it is that the Geyser should be so constructed; and I -have seen a little apparatus made of glass, which showed exactly the -same sort of operations. - -Some little variation in the shape of the reservoir and pipe, may -perhaps be needed to account for all that takes place; but the -principle of the activity being produced by the agency of steam, acting -in a space which may be enclosed by the water in its rising to a -certain height, seems to be certain and satisfactory. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -OF THE ROCKS CALLED BASALTIC. - - -In some parts of the world, there are rocks which are not stratified -and arranged like those which I described to you some time ago, but are -laid over the surfaces, and in the crevices of others in this manner:-- - -[Illustration] - -In this cut, _a_, _a_, _a_, are intended to represent the stratified -rocks, and _b_, _b_, _b_, the others, which from their position are -sometimes called _overlying rocks_, and they mostly consist of a -substance called _basalt_, which is nearly black and very hard, and -occasionally with white and coloured minerals imbedded in it. There are -two states in which it is found; in one, it occurs in masses without -any particular form, and in the other state it constitutes pillars -shaped with great accuracy and regularity. - -[Illustration: PLATE VIII. - -STAFFA.] - -The island of Staffa, one of the western islands of Scotland, and the -Giant's Causeway, on the north coast of Ireland, near Londonderry, are -remarkable instances of the latter state; and as I have seen them both, -I will tell you what sort of places they are. - - -STAFFA. - -This wonderful island was not generally known to exist, even by the -inhabitants of Scotland, till the last century, when Sir Joseph Bankes -happened to see it, and published an account of it. Since then it has -been visited by numbers, and lately a steam-boat has regularly plied to -it twice a week, from the little town of Oban, in Argyleshire. - -It was in this way that I went, and a most delightful trip we had -of it. The steam-boat left Oban in the afternoon, full of kind -light-hearted people, who seemed fully resolved to enjoy themselves. In -the evening we reached the island of Mull, where we were to spend the -night. - -The inhabitants of Tobermory, (the little capital of Mull,) anxiously -look out for the arrival of the steam-boat, for they are very poor, and -the little money which the passengers spend, is a great object to them. -On these occasions the inns are seldom large enough to accommodate all -the strangers, and then a strange scramble takes place to get lodgings -for the night. Most of our party succeeded in doing so, and the rest -remained on board the steam-boat. - -We went to see a beautiful little estate on one side of the harbour of -Tobermory, which belongs to the son of the old Laird of Coll, whom Dr. -Johnson visited. The grounds are nearly in the shape of a triangle, and -the two sides that are away from the sea, are formed by lofty rocks -with several beautiful waterfalls; and in the middle is a pretty lake. -Except the house on this estate, there are scarcely any good houses in -or near Tobermory, and the inhabitants are very ignorant and poor. Many -of them who could not speak any other English words, ran after us to -ask us for pence and tobacco. - -We started early in the morning, and passed several small islands of -curious forms, composed of basalt; one in particular, which is called -the Dutchman's cap, shaped like this. - -[Illustration] - -As we approached Staffa, on the north side, we could see scarcely -anything of the pillars. It appeared a mass of Basalt, of very -irregular shape, rising abruptly out of the sea, scantily covered with -grass on the upper surface. - -[Illustration] - -It is the south side of the island that is chiefly remarkable, of which -I will show you a picture that I made on the spot. - -It has (as you may see) exactly the appearance of a great layer of -earth swelling out at the edges, resting on a vast number of pillars -stuck close together. The colour of the pillars is nearly black, and -that of the stratum above, lightish green, yellow, and brown, from the -grass and variously coloured lichens that grow upon it. The sea is very -deep, quite close to the cliffs. - -The day I was there, was as fine as possible; not a cloud was to be -seen, and the great ocean was as calm as a mill-pond, which is not very -common in these parts, for there is mostly a considerable swell. - -The celebrated cave of Fingal, as it is called, (but why, nobody -knows,) is close to one extremity of the south side. - -[Illustration: Plate IX. - -FINGAL'S CAVE] - -It seems just as if it had been formed by cutting away the middle of -some of the pillars, since you can see that many parts of the pillars -now remaining on the roof, are placed as if they were continuations of -the stumps on which you walk at the bottom. - -We went into it in a boat, and when we were at the farther end, we got -out upon the broken pillars and surveyed everything at our leisure. - -The length of the cave is two hundred and fifty feet, the breadth about -forty, and the height above one hundred feet at the entrance, and -seventy at the inner end. - -Along the middle of the roof, is a deep cleft, or fissure, which makes -it something like a pointed arch, resembling the roof of a cathedral. -The sides of the fissure are variegated, yellow, red, brown, and white, -in consequence of water containing various substances, soaking through -from the surface above; and on each side of it, there are several rows -of the top of the broken pillars, which look quite black. - -On the sides at the bottom, the stumps form a sort of pavement like -this, which is an exact copy of a small portion of it, and will show -you the forms of the pillars; some stand higher than others; but there -is not generally sufficient difference to prevent you from walking over -them. - -[Illustration] - -Between these pavements the water is very deep, and as it flows direct -from the Atlantic Ocean without any dirty shore or shallows, it looks -very beautiful,--of a clear emerald green, showing at the bottom -the black basaltic pillars in ruins, and a very few long luxuriant -sea-weeds gracefully waving with the undulations of the water. - -The exposed surfaces of the pillars, between high and low water-marks, -are covered with the little shell-fish called _balanus_, or BARNACLE, -of colours varying from pink, which is the hue of those that are placed -deepest, to yellow and white, which are those that are least covered by -the water. - -The walls of the cave above these shells, are of a deep slate colour. -The pillars which compose them, are on the average about three feet -in diameter, and they are fitted so close together that you cannot get -a penknife in between them. If separated at certain intervals, they -break short off, and leave a remarkably level surface without the least -splinter. Between these joints they break roughly and irregularly. - -Here is a view of the inside of the cave. - -It is supposed that these wonderful pillars are formed by the cooling -of a melted mass, and that this and other basaltic spots, are the -remains of streams of lava from a volcano long ago extinct. - -In some of the lava streams of Mount Vesuvius, there has been noticed -an approach to this structure, though not quite so regular as what we -have been describing. - -You may understand in some measure how it may come about, by examining -starch, which always hardens into little columns or pillars; and if -you look at the little sketch of a portion of the pavement of the cave -which I have given you above, you will see that nearly all the pillars -have six sides, the same as the pieces of starch. - -It is remarkable what pains the basalt seems to have taken to get into -a six-sided form. I should think about two-thirds of the columns have -six sides, though sometimes one side is little more than a sharp edge -blunted, because it seems to have been prevented by its neighbour -making a similar effort to get its six sides complete. - -None of the remaining third of the pillars, have more than nine, or, of -course, less than three sides. You might look a long time before you -would find two pillars exactly alike. - -All this you will find occurring just in the same manner in starch, -except that the edges of the basalt pillars are quite even, while those -of starch are more or less waved or twisted. - -Near the side of the cave there is a little rock formed by pillars into -a pretty regular cone, which you may see in the plate. It has a very -striking appearance as you approach the island. - -Close by the rock there is a little cave, the mouth of which is formed -by bent pillars, in this manner. - -[Illustration] - -The water in this is not very deep, but it was deep enough to give one -of my companions a good ducking as he was trying to reach a shell which -one of the ladies of our party wanted to possess. - -You will also often see something like these bent pillars in starch. - - -THE GIANT'S CAUSEWAY. - -On the north coast of Ireland, the Giant's Causeway is a collection of -similar pillars of rather a smaller size. They stretch far into the -sea, and at low water you may walk a long distance upon the tops of -them. - -The pillars get higher as they approach the cliff, and in the cliff -itself, just above them, is a remarkable layer of fossil wood in the -state called lignite, which closely resembles charcoal. - -At some distance from the Causeway, some of the pillars stand up by -themselves, looking just like tall chimneys. There are also some -wonderful caves in the Basaltic cliffs behind it, but none of them -consisting of pillars like the great cave of Staffa. It is called the -Giant's Causeway, because some people have fancied that it resembled -the commencement of a great pier or causeway, which some beings of -superhuman power had left unfinished. This is only a fancy for poets to -talk of; you and I are now engaged about facts. - -There are some similar formations in Iceland, of very great extent, and -in several other parts of the world; but those I have told you about, -are the most remarkable which are known to exist. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -WHY PARLEY BELIEVES THAT THERE IS A GREAT SOURCE OF HEAT WITHIN THE -GLOBE. - - -If you have attended to what I have already told you, you will -have seen that there must be a close connection between the causes -of volcanoes, earthquakes, and hot springs, (if they are not all -to be ascribed to one cause,) from their always occurring in the -neighbourhood of each other. But there is something else that you ought -to notice in reference to this connection. - -I said, that a volcanic eruption was almost always preceded by shakings -of the ground round the root of the mountain. These shakings are -sometimes so violent as to be dreadful earthquakes, and at other times -the earthquake will be at a long distance from the volcano. - -There was once a great earthquake which kept on for some days on the -north shore of South America, and then stopped quite suddenly. It was -afterwards found out, that just at the moment it stopped, a tremendous -eruption burst forth from a volcano in one of the West-India islands, -more than 150 miles off. - -You know what the safety-valve of a steam-engine is. Now it would seem -just as if volcanoes were safety-valves for the power which causes -earthquakes. - -Very well.--I am now going to tell you what people have thought -this power has been owing to. Before I do so, that you may not be -disappointed, I should tell you that we know very little on the -subject; nor shall we ever know much till somebody can get down to the -centre of the earth, unless some of the little black spirits, that -the Rosicrucians called Gnomes, and fabled to live in the middle of -the globe, should be kind enough to give us some information on the -subject. - -In the meantime, we can only guess; but we ought to guess as well as we -can, and see whether our guess is not much more likely to be true than -any of the others. - -Volcanic bands are always near the sea-shore, and it has therefore been -generally supposed that water has something to do with their action. - -If you take a mixture of sulphur and iron filings, and mix them into -a paste with water, and then bury them in the ground, after a while -they will become hot and send out a great quantity of steam. Some -people have imagined that this is the way in which volcanic activity -is produced, but no one thinks so now, and for very good reasons, for -there is nothing in the action so produced at all capable of accounting -for long continued eruptions, or for the flowing out of the lava. - -Sir Humphrey Davy found out, that nearly all kinds of salt and earth, -which had been before looked upon as simple substances, contained -certain metals united to oxygen, which, (as you should know,) is one -of the parts of water, and, in the form of gas, of the air we breathe. -If you put a piece of one of these metals into water, it is in such a -hurry to join itself to the oxygen of the water, that you set it on -fire. A little piece of _potassium_, (the metal of the salt called -_potash_, or _pearlash_,) will float for a few moments on the surface -of the water, burning with a purple flame in the prettiest manner -imaginable. - -[Illustration] - -Sir Humphrey thought he had got the true explanation of the thing. -These wonderful metals formed the basis of every substance in lava, -and supposing them to exist in the centre of the globe, it was only -necessary for water to get to them to set them on fire, and thus to -give rise to earthquakes and volcanoes. It appeared only to be required -that a crack should be made at the bottom of the sea, and the water -flow into the beds of metal underneath, and the violent action produced -would burst through the surface, and throw out streams of melted -matter, accompanied with great clouds of steam, just as takes place in -the eruptions of Mount Vesuvius and other volcanoes. - -But you would find it very difficult to think how this can account for -continual and nearly steady operations, such as have been known to -exist in the Geysers of Iceland for more than 1000 years, and in Mount -Stromboli for much longer than that, so we will try another guess. - -It has been observed in descending deep mines, that the earth gets -warmer the deeper you go. The usual mode of trying it is to dig little -holes, as you go down, in the sides and bottom of the mine, and put a -thermometer into them. A great many observations of this kind, have -been made in different parts of the world, and the greatest care has -been taken to allow for all causes of irregularity, consisting in -climate and local peculiarities. Comparing these together, it has -been determined that the temperature increases about one degree every -fifteen feet of descent. - -A similar conclusion has been drawn from the heat of the water of the -Artesian Wells. But, perhaps, you do not know what Artesian Wells are, -so I will tell you. - -They are deep borings in the earth, out of which water rises to, or -even above, the surface of the ground. Wherever you bore, if you go -deep enough you may get plenty of water, and this water is always found -to be warmer in proportion to the depth of the well in which it rises. -They are called _Artesian Wells_, from _Artois_, a town in France, -where the first was constructed. - -In a well of this kind near Rochelle, which was 316 feet deep, the -water near the surface was at a temperature of 55 degrees, and at the -bottom 60 degrees. It was afterwards sunk to the depth of 369 feet, -and the temperature at the bottom was then found to be 65 degrees. - -Do you not think it most likely that the heat continues to increase -quite as fast in proportion below the deepest point that man has gone -down to? Well, if so, at the depth of some miles it must be hot enough -to melt anything, even granite, and all kinds of stones. - -If we suppose, on this evidence, that the centre of the globe is -intensely heated, and that it gets gradually cooler towards the -surface, there is what at once will account for the hot springs, the -increasing heat in descending mines, the constant action of some -volcanoes, the occasional action of others, the streams of lava, and -the nature of all substances that are thrown out. - -It is very natural to imagine that every now and then the action of -the great heated mass inside, would crack open the crust, and the sea -wearing away its bottom in some places as it does, may have something -to do in assisting this. Thus, new volcanoes would be formed, and -earthquakes would happen where they never happened before; and over -these immense cracks there would be a volcanic band. - -Then, after a time, these cracks might be partially, or wholly, filled -up by the matter thrown into them, and the volcanoes on the surface -above may become quiet for a time. - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -PARLEY TELLS SOMETHING ABOUT THE HISTORY OF MOUNT VESUVIUS. - - -I am going to relate to you the biography of a Volcano, and I hope you -will find it amusing. - -Before the time of the Roman Emperor Trajan, Mount Vesuvius had been -quiet for a great many centuries. It is known that it had had many -eruptions before then, because there are some great lava streams close -by it, on which some of the most ancient Italian cities are built. -In particular, Herculaneum, which was said to have been built by -the Demi-god Hercules, and must therefore have been of the remotest -antiquity, was built chiefly of blocks of lava, and founded upon a -vast stream of the same substance. - -And besides, there is no doubt that the land all about the -neighbourhood in the remotest times, bore evident marks of the action -of fire; for it was here that the Poets pretended that the gate of Hell -was, and close by the black and dreary-looking lake Avernus, which you -may read about in the Æneid of Virgil. This was also the place where -the Cimmerians dwelt, whom Ulysses is said to have visited, according -to Homer, on his way to the regions of the dead. - - -THE GROTTO DEL CANO. - -Near here, too, was the celebrated Grotto del Cano, the cave which used -to destroy the lives of small animals put into it, by means of the -exhalations that rose from the bottom; but as these exhalations were -heavier than the air, consisting chiefly of the gas called carbonic -acid, they did not rise much above the bottom. This is what an old -writer, the account of whose travels I am very fond of, says of it. - -"Whatsoever hath life, being thrust into the farre end, doth die in -an instant. Yet entred it may be a good way with safety; neither -heat nor cold will oppress you, nor is there any damp or vapour to -be discerned; being perspicuous to the bottome, and the sole thereof -dusty. We made triall with a dog; which we no sooner had thrust in, -but without crying, or otherwise struggling than if shot to the heart, -his tongue hung out, and his eyes setled in his head, to our no small -amazement. Forthwith drawne out, starke, and to our seeming without -shew of life, we threw him into the lake; when anon he recovered, and -swimming to the shore, ran crying away as fast as hee could, to the -not farre distant _Osteria_: where they get no small part of their -living by shewing this place unto forreiners. And it is a sport to see -how the dogs thereabout will steale away, and scud to the tops of the -mountaines, at the approach of a stranger. The _French_ King _Charles_, -the eighth of that name, who held the kingdome of _Naples_ for a -while; made triall thereof with an Asse, which immediately died. The -like befell to a foole-hardy souldier. _Peter of Toledo_ caused two -offenders to be thrust thereinto, and both expired in a moment. Nor -found those three gallants any better successe, who tempted God with -their desperate entrance. This place was not unknowne to _Pliny_, who -calleth it the Cave of _Charon_. The cause of so deadly an effect, is -said to proceede from the fervent vapours ascending at invisible pores, -so thin, so dry, and subtile, as not to be discerned: yet thickned by -the cold that enters at the mouth of the Cave, convert into moisture, -which hangs farre within on the roofe like to drops of quick-silver; -and such esteemed to bee by a number. _Carona Pighyus_, desirous to -informe himselfe in the mysteries hereof, ventured so farre in as -to touch one of those farre of shining drops, and shewed it to his -companions, who entred also, and stayed therein about a minute of an -houre: sensibly perceiving the heat to arise from their feet to their -thighs, till they did sweat at the browes without the endammaging of -their senses, who return'd, to the wonder of the guide, that thought -they had preserved themselves by enchantments. By this their experiment -it appeares that the aire is most deadly neere to the pores where -it first ascended; especially to such creatures as hold their heads -downeward, exhaling at their nostrils the dry and hote vapours. Thrust -a torch neere the bottome, and it will forthwith go out: yet advanced -higher, re-inflames, which approves the former assertion." - - -OF THE DEATH OF PLINY THE NATURALIST. - -But although there were such gloomy places in the neighbourhood, in the -reign of Trajan, less than a hundred years after the Christian Era, -Mount Vesuvius was clothed with blooming vineyards, and corn fields, -studded with villas and beautiful gardens, and with three or four rich -and populous cities near its foot. - -The height of the mountain was then much less than it is at present, -and it seems to have had a broad flat top, nearly surrounded by a ridge. - -[Illustration] - -This shape will account for the spot being chosen by the Roman rebel -Spartacus to encamp in, with his gladiators and slaves, when he put -Rome in danger. - -For some time before the first eruption on record, there were dreadful -earthquakes, of which the effects are still to be seen in the cracked -and ruined walls of Pompeii and Herculaneum. "There were great -droughts," says the historian, "and violent earthquakes, so that the -whole plain boiled and bubbled, and the hills leapt, and there were -noises under ground like thunder, and above ground like roaring; the -seas made a noise, and the Heavens resounded, and then a sudden mighty -crash was heard, as if the mountains were dashed together; great -stones were then hurled upwards, and were followed by mighty fires, -and immense smoke, so that the whole air was overshadowed, and the sun -quite hidden as in an eclipse." - -The same writer then tells us about some wonderful giants appearing to -wander about the summit of the mountain, which neither you nor I shall -be ready to believe. - -Pliny, the great naturalist, was at that time living at the town of -Misenum, and as he was a man always prying into nature, and wishing -to know the causes of things, you may suppose his curiosity was very -much excited by these strange occurrences. But he paid dearly for this -laudable curiosity, as you shall hear in the account which his nephew -has left us of the event. - -"On the 24th of August, about one in the afternoon, my mother desired -him to observe a cloud which appeared of a very unusual size and shape. -He had just returned from taking the benefit of the sun, and after -bathing himself in cold water, and taking a slight repast, had retired -to his study. He immediately arose and went out upon an eminence, from -whence he might more distinctly view this very uncommon appearance. -It was not at that distance discernible from what mountain this cloud -issued, but it was found afterwards to ascend from Mount Vesuvius. I -cannot give a more exact description of its figure, than by comparing -it to that of a pine-tree, for it shot up a great height in the form -of a trunk, which extended itself at the top into a sort of branches; -occasioned, I imagine, either by a sudden gust of air that impelled -it, the force of which decreased as it advanced upwards, or the cloud -itself being pressed back again by its own weight, expanded in this -manner: it appeared sometimes bright, and sometimes dark and spotted, -as it was more or less impregnated with earth and cinders. This -extraordinary phenomenon excited my uncle's philosophical curiosity to -take a nearer view of it. He ordered a light vessel to be got ready, -and gave me the liberty, if I thought proper, to attend him. I rather -chose to continue my studies; for, as it happened, he had given me an -employment of that kind. As he was coming out of the house, he received -a note from Rectina, the wife of Bassus, who was in the utmost alarm at -the imminent danger which threatened her; for her villa being situated -at the foot of Mount Vesuvius, there was no way to escape but by sea: -she earnestly entreated him, therefore, to come to her assistance. -He accordingly changed his first design, and what he began with a -philosophical, he pursued with an heroical turn of mind. He ordered the -gallies to put to sea, and went himself on board with the intention of -assisting not only Rectina, but several others; for the villas stand -extremely thick upon that beautiful coast. When hastening to the place -from whence others fled with the utmost terror, he steered his direct -course to the point of danger, and with so much calmness and presence -of mind, as to be able to make and dictate his observations upon the -motion and figure of that dreadful scene. He was now so nigh the -mountain, that the cinders, which grew thicker and hotter the nearer -he approached, fell into the ships, together with pumice-stones, and -black pieces of burning rock: they were likewise in danger, not only of -being aground by the sudden retreat of the sea, but also from the vast -fragments which rolled down from the mountain, and obstructed all the -shore. Here he stopped to consider whether he should return back again; -to which the pilot advising him, 'Fortune,' said he, 'befriends the -brave; carry me to Pomponianus.'" - -His nephew then goes on to relate that he joined his friend who was in -another vessel, and went on shore, where he took a bath and sat down -to supper, not seeming to be in the least alarmed, when everybody -about him was in the greatest consternation. He then went to sleep so -soundly, that he was heard to snore. The ashes fell so thick in the -court before his apartment, that it was getting nearly impassable, and -his servants thought proper to awaken him. The walls of the houses -began to rock, and he and his friends then resolved to go out into the -fields, lest the stones and bricks should fall upon them. They tied -pillows upon their heads, and went out with torches, for though it was -daytime, the clouds of steam and ashes made it quite dark. They went -down to the sea, and found it in violent commotion. Either a sudden -gust of wind then brought the effluvia of the volcano towards them, or -else a little stream of deadly vapour burst out from a crack in the -ground, which dispersed the rest of the company. But Pliny, who was a -fat asthmatic old man, had laid down upon the ground to watch what was -going on. He attempted to rise, but almost before he had got on his -feet, he fell down dead. - -"As soon as it was light again," says his nephew, "which was not till -the third day after this melancholy accident, his body was found -entire, and without any marks of violence upon it, exactly in the same -posture that he fell." - -It was in the same eruption that the two great cities, Herculaneum and -Pompeii were overwhelmed by substances thrown out by the volcano. It -does not appear that a single stream of lava flowed out till many years -afterwards. - -There were several great eruptions between this time and the year 1306, -and then the volcano was very nearly quiet for more than 300 years. -During this time the volcanic power broke out in another place called -Puzzuoli, at several miles distance. After a succession of violent -eruptions, the earth was cleft open, and a hill, which is now called -the Monte Nuovo, was thrown up in the space of a single night, which is -440 feet high, and a mile and a half in circumference. - -At the end of this period Vesuvius was richly covered with vegetation, -even within the crater. But since the year 1650, there has not been ten -years pass without an eruption. - -[Illustration] - -The form of the mountain has quite changed, and a little mountain has -grown up out of the old broad topped one, as you may see in the above -picture. - - -HERCULANEUM AND POMPEII. - -These cities which were of great extent and importance, seem to have -been almost forgotten during more than 1600 years. They are not often -mentioned in Roman history, and, strange to say, the Latin writers who -describe the eruption of Vesuvius, by which they must have been buried, -have said nothing about them, except a very vague allusion or two, -which would hardly have attracted any notice, if what I am going to -tell you of, had not happened. - -In the year 1713, as some people were sinking a well, they discovered -two statues, one of Hercules, and the other of Cleopatra; and -continuing to dig in several directions, they found they had got into a -Roman theatre, and after a while they discovered that this Theatre was -that of the City of Herculaneum. But in consequence of the hardness of -the ground, and the great depth of the city under the surface, which -is one hundred feet, they have only been able to clear out a very few -buildings, and those cannot be seen except by torchlight, so that very -little is known about it. - -I cannot tell you exactly how the ruins of Pompeii were first -discovered to be the remains of a city. It appears that an architect, -who was employed to make a subterranean canal to convey water to the -town of Torre dell'Annunziata, nearly 300 years ago, met with some -fragments of buildings; and about eighty years afterwards, enough was -seen to convince the discoverers that the ruins were extensive. In the -year 1755, a regular plan of excavation was commenced, and nearly the -whole city is now exposed to the light of day. - -The situation of Pompeii is considerably further from the crater of -Vesuvius than that of Herculaneum, and to that circumstance is owing -the superiority of its preservation, and the greater moveableness of -the substances which covered it. It is probable that both cities were -originally assailed by alluvions, or streams of mud, such as I told -you of some time ago, as well as by showers of cinders and stones. But -while Pompeii was only fourteen or fifteen feet below the surface, -and never had anything besides cinders and earth above it, several -streams of lava flowed over Herculaneum, with layers of the different -substances, which the volcano throws into the air, between them, so as -to raise the surface one hundred feet. - -[Illustration] - -Pompeii was three miles in circumference, and was a sea-port town, -though it is now a full mile from the sea. This is known, because the -steps which used to lead down from the quay, for the convenience of -passengers going into boats, are still remaining, and so are some large -metal rings which were intended for cables to be fastened to. - -There are several inscriptions in both cities commemorating the great -injuries done by an earthquake which happened in the reign of the -Emperor Nero, sixteen years before they were destroyed. There are also -great cracks to be seen in some of the walls, testifying of the same -event. This was one of the efforts of the volcanic power to get free -before Vesuvius became the safety-valve. - -It is very evident that there was ample warning of the catastrophe -before it happened, and that most of the people had time to escape, -for the number of skeletons found has been but small. In the barracks, -there were the skeletons of two soldiers chained in the stocks. There -were seventeen persons found in the cellar of a house just out of the -town, who seem to have fled there for safety, and the deluge of mud -then seems to have flowed in upon them, for their bones were found -in hardened mud. One of the number was a woman, with an infant in -her arms, and the impression of her form in the mud, was wonderfully -perfect, though there was nothing left of her but the bones. She seems -to have been the mistress of the house, and a person of consequence, -since she had a chain of gold about her neck, and rich rings on her -fingers. - -In these instances, (and there are related several others similar,) the -destruction of the persons seems to be accounted for by the peculiar -circumstances in which they were placed. The soldiers, poor fellows, -would, doubtless, have gone off with their companions, if they had not -been in the stocks; and the family of seventeen might have escaped if -they had fled into the open country, instead of into their cellar. - -The warning does not however seem to have been very long before the -sad event, perhaps only about an hour. There have recently been found -three skeletons, which seem to have belonged to a father, mother, -and daughter, (the latter of whom was decorated with pearl-rings and -ear-rings,) who were in the act of rushing out of their house. And in -one of the squares of the city, a traveller saw "a new altar of white -marble, exquisitely beautiful, and apparently just out of the hands of -the sculptor, which had been erected there; an enclosure was building -all round; the mortar, just dashed against the side of the wall, was -but half spread out; you saw the long sliding stroke of the trowel -about to return and obliterate its own track--but it never did return: -the hand of the workman was suddenly arrested, and, after the lapse of -1800 years, the whole looks so fresh and new, that you would almost -say the mason was only gone to his dinner, and about to come back -immediately to smooth the roughness." - -It is not unlikely that in the early part of the eruption, the ashes -and cinders which the volcano threw out, fell in showers on the -cities, and that the walls were shaken by the subterranean movements, -so that most of the inhabitants thought themselves less in danger in -the open fields, like the people of Misenum, who went into the fields -with pillows tied on their heads, as described by Pliny the younger, in -the passage I quoted just now. Some few others, less afraid of their -houses tumbling down about their ears, than of the bombs and cinders, -betook themselves to their cellars, and such places as they thought -safest. - -I shall now tell you a little of what has been discovered relating to -the ancient state of the City. - -Its walls were about three miles in circumference; the streets were -generally narrow, and paved with great flags of lava, which are -furrowed by very deep ruts made by the wheels of the carriages that -once passed busily along them. When the great hardness of the paving -material is considered, this circumstance is very remarkable, and shows -that the flags must have been laid down for a very long period, for -the like is not to be seen in the streets of the most ancient City in -Europe. - -[Illustration: PLATE X. - -FORUM OF POMPEII.] - -The Forum was a very elegant building, and if you look in the plate, -you will see a correct representation of what remains of it. The Forums -of ancient cities were not mere marketplaces, although provisions -and other commodities were offered in them for sale; but they also -contained places fitted for meetings of the people, and other public -uses. You will thus understand how it was that a place not larger than -Pompeii had such an extensive Forum. - -The names of the owners over the door of each house are still to be -seen, and some of them are perfectly legible; and the colours of the -paintings on the walls of the houses, are as fresh as if they had -been painted yesterday. Some books have been found, but they are less -perfect than those in Herculaneum, where a whole library has been -discovered. - -The wood of the houses in Herculaneum is astonishingly perfect if -you just scrape off the surface, and some linen has been discovered, -of which the texture could be distinctly seen. There were also some -vessels full of almonds, chesnuts, and walnuts, in a fruiterer's shop, -which preserved their form entire. A baker lived near neighbour to this -fruiterer, and in his shop was a loaf with his stamp upon it, "ELERIS -Q. CRANI RISER." Not far off was an apothecary's shop, in which was a -box of pills, and a little roll of some kind of medicine ready to be -cut into pills, with a jar of herbs and other medicines. Another shop -contained some sauces and olives, which were quite moist. These curious -relics have been sealed up in glass, and placed in the Museum of Naples. - -There is a house in one of the streets of Pompeii, on one of the walls -of which there has been scratched with some sharp-pointed instrument, a -rude device like this: - -[Illustration] - -The letters in the corner, are, "_Campani victoria una cum Nucerinis -peristis_." _Campanians, you perished in the victory along with the -Nucerians._ This was a jest of some merry fellow making fun of the -inhabitants of Nuceria, a neighbouring city, and of some other parts -of Campania, over whom they had gained a victory in a squabble. We are -told that the Nucerians, when they were dead beaten, went like cowards -to the Emperor Nero, and laid their case before him. He decided in -their favour, and punished the Pompeians in what may seem a strange -way to you,--he forbade them to have any amusements in their theatre -for ten years. However, from what we know of the general disposition -and habits of the ancient Greeks and Romans, this was a very severe -punishment to them. From the scarcity of books, arising from their -being copied by hand, instead of being printed, but few of them could -spend their leisure time in reading, as so many of us do now; and in -consequence of this, the theatre was to them at once the principal -source of literary improvement and of amusement. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration: PLATE XI. - -FALLS OF NIAGARA] - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -PARLEY DESCRIBES THE FALLS OF NIAGARA. - - -The river Niagara runs out of Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, and you may -see the direction it takes if you look in the map of North America. You -may likewise observe that Lake Erie is connected with three other vast -Lakes, and as its level is lower than theirs, the whole of their waters -pass through it into the Niagara. - -Nearly half way between the Lakes Erie and Ontario, where the river is -about three quarters of a mile wide, it tumbles over a precipice of -160 feet in height. I shall try to describe to you what I saw when I -visited this place; but I am quite certain I shall not be able to do -justice to the scene. You must form your conceptions of it rather from -the bare facts I tell you respecting the mass of water and the height -of the rocky ledge over which it falls. - -As we travelled along from the town of Waterloo on a level road on the -west bank, we saw the river gradually become wider till it was cut into -two streams by a long narrow island some miles in length. The streams -after passing the island, unite into one again, which continues its -course as before. - -There is a sullen unpretending majesty about this part of the river, as -if it did not think it worth while to remind the traveller of the vast -distance which its mighty waters have come, or of the stupendous scene -to which they are travelling onward. There is nothing remarkable in its -appearance, and that very circumstance, coupled with what we knew and -what we shortly expected to see, made us full of intense feeling; and -often and often did we put our ears to the ground to hear whether the -sound of the falls could reach us, and then remount and impatiently -spur on our horses. - -They say that the roar of the falls may be heard fifteen miles off when -the wind is favourable. But the day we went, there was hardly any wind, -and we were within six miles of the spot before we heard the sound. - -At the distance of three miles the waters seemed fretful and -discontented, as they approached what are called the rapids; we -could see afar off "a silver cloud rising slowly into the sky--the -everlasting incense of the waters," consisting of vapour, or rather -fine spray, which is dashed out by the violence of the fall; and the -roar seemed deeper and more tumultuous. - -Within half a mile the rapids commence in good earnest. A rapid means -the descent of a river down an inclined bed less sudden than a fall. -The descent here in half a mile, is fifty feet. The bed is rocky, and -the waters in rushing over it foam, and eddy, and tear along in all -directions in which they can possibly approach the awful precipice. The -unity of the stream is broken by thousands of rocks and stones, and -every part of its broad surface seems earnestly taken up with driving -forward to the falls. - -After we had enjoyed this scene awhile, we turned into the road again, -and lost sight of the river till we reached a public-house, where we -took refreshment and put up our horses. - -The precipice which here breaks the course of the river, is divided -into three parts by two large islands, and thus are formed three -distinct falls. One of these is called the _Great_, or _Horse Shoe -Fall_, from its peculiar shape, which you will see represented in the -picture. This is by far the most extensive waterfall in the world, and -is considered to be above a quarter of a mile in length. Then comes an -island a thousand feet in width, called Goat Island, which has a great -deal of wood growing on it. After that the Second Fall, not more than -twenty feet in width, then an island considerably smaller than the -first; and lastly, Fort Scloper Fall, about a thousand feet wide, which -joins the opposite bank of the river. - -[Illustration] - -The quantity of water which descends every minute in the three falls, -has been estimated to be about 700,000 tons. - -Well, a path through the garden of the Inn at which we were, led us -down a steep and thickly wooded bank, to a complete shelf of rock, -about a foot in thickness, called the Table Rock, which stands out -over the river.[A] Since I was there this piece of rock has broken away -and fallen into the stream. I was not at all surprised when I heard -this intelligence, for I can assure you that though I am no coward, it -did not seem very secure when I was standing on it, and if I had not -been quite taken up with what I was looking at, I should not have staid -there long. Here the whole scene on a sudden broke upon us. We were on -a level with the top of the precipice, with the Horse Shoe Fall just -opposite, and to our left, the Second, and Fort Scloper Falls. - -[Footnote A: The print is copied by the kind permission of Messrs. -Ackermann, from one of the elegant series of engravings of the Falls of -Niagara, published by them.] - -In spite of the loud roar and the violent rushing of the waters, the -scene altogether produced on us feelings of deep tranquillity and -beauty. The portion of the river that falls over the Horse Shoe Fall, -comes on in such an unbroken mass, as if nothing dared to oppose the -progress of a single drop of its water. Then the deep transparent green -of the middle stream, showing at a little depth beneath its surface, -shreds of milky foam, the beautiful cloud of fine spray ever decorated -with a rich rainbow when the sun shines, and the thick woods of Goat -Island, (the island that limits the Horse Shoe Fall,) are in such -lovely harmony. Altogether, I should say that the scene from the Table -Rock, is more remarkable for its beauty than its grandeur, though its -grandeur is quite equal to that of anything I ever looked upon in my -life. - -We got down to the bottom of the falls by means of some rough steps -which have been cut in the rock. As we stood on some large fragments -which have fallen down from the cliff above, the roar fell with -overpowering heaviness upon our ears, the fall was nearly hid from our -eyes by the spray, and the river rushed past our feet in a terrible -tumult of white foam. By getting along on the stones under the cliff, -we went in under the fall so as actually to be between the rock and -the descending sheet of water. Your imagination must tell you better -than I can, the character of what we then saw by the broken light that -made its way through the descending mass of waters. We stopped there, -overpowered by indescribable feelings, till we got wet through by the -spray, and then went back to the inn, stored with recollections, which -will be a feast for us as long as we live. - -A traveller who visited the Falls in winter, adds some particulars -which will be interesting to you. - -"At the time of my visit," says he, "the wind drove the floating ice -out of Lake Erie, with the drift wood of its tributary rivers, and -these were constantly precipitated over the Falls, but we were not able -to discover any vestiges of them in the eddies below. Immediately in -front of the sheet of falling water, on the American side, there was -also an enormous bank of snow, of nearly a hundred feet in height, -which the power of the sun had not been fierce enough to dissolve, and -which, by giving an Icelandic character to the landscape, produced a -fine effect. It appeared to me to owe its accumulation to the fallen -particles of frozen spray. - -"What has been said by Goldsmith, and repeated by others, respecting -the destructive influence of the rapids above, to ducks and other -water-fowl, is only an effect of the imagination. So far from being the -case, the wild duck is often seen to swim down the rapid to the brink -of the Falls, and then fly out, and repeat the descent, seeming to take -a delight in the exercise. Neither are small land-birds affected on -flying over the Falls, in the manner that has been stated. I observed -the blue bird and the wren, which had already made their annual visit -to the banks of the Niagara, frequently fly within one or two feet of -the brink, apparently delighted with the gift of their wings, which -enabled them to sport over such frightful precipices, without danger." - - - - - PART II. - - WONDERS OF THE SEA. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -PARLEY TELLS ABOUT THE FROZEN OCEAN. - - -Your old friend Peter loves to talk about the sea. Ever since he was -a child, he loved everything belonging to the sea, and when he was -a young man he went many long voyages, and met with many strange -adventures, on the sea. Perhaps he did not find it quite so delightful -to be shut up in the narrow compass of a ship, during long voyages, -as he dreamt he should in his childhood. But he does not now regret -whatever labours or sufferings he may have endured, for the pleasure he -finds in telling you of them. - -But I do not intend here to spin you a yarn (as the sailors say) about -myself, but merely to describe to you some of the wonderful things I -have seen during my voyages, that you may love and admire them. - -You have never seen the sea frozen over in the same manner as you have -seen ponds and rivers in winter. The waters of the sea, everywhere, -contain a large portion of salt, as you know from their taste, and -this prevents them from freezing, except where it is very cold. It is -only near the poles of the earth that the ocean freezes, and there are -large masses of ice, both at the north and south poles, which are never -thawed, but stand as stedfast as the everlasting hills of granite. - -Icebergs are large bodies of ice filling the valleys between the high -mountains in northern latitudes. Sometimes they get loosened from the -places where they were formed, by parts of them thawing, in seasons -which are less cold than usual, and then rush down towards the sea, -where they float about in all manner of fantastic and majestic forms. - -[Illustration: _Icebergs._] - -These icebergs are the creation of ages, and annually increase by the -falling of snows, and of rain, which instantly freezes, and more than -repairs the loss occasioned by the heat of the sun. - -I must tell you a little about the way in which cold converts water -into ice. - -Everything in nature is expanded or increased in bulk by heat. You -may see in a thermometer how the quick-silver or the coloured spirit -rises in the tube, because it expands when the instrument is in a -warm place, and how it sinks in a cold place. It is just the same with -solids and gases. This would seem to be a universal law of nature, -if it were not for the _single_ exception of water at the moment of -its freezing. If water is cooled down to the freezing point, it will -gradually diminish in bulk, but at the moment it turns into ice, it -seems to spring outward, and increases considerably. In this way -bottles are broken when the water in them freezes; and rocks are often -split open in the same manner when the cracks in them contain water. - -You have seen that ice does not sink in water, but floats upon the -surface; this takes place, because from the circumstance which I have -told you, a certain quantity of ice by weight, occupies more space than -the same quantity of water. Now it is worth while for you to see how -wisely this is arranged, as it respects our own climate and country; -for if ice were to sink to the bottom, the lakes, and rivers, and -ponds, would become solid masses of ice during winter, which the sun's -rays would never thoroughly thaw in summer, because, after the surface -had been thawed, the rays would have to pass through the water to get -at the ice at the bottom, and thus our climate would be rendered very -much colder than it is at present, and perhaps the springs would not -circulate, so that we should often suffer from scarcity of water. - -But when the salt water freezes, the ice is very porous, almost like a -honeycomb, so that it is much lighter than frozen fresh water, and is -very buoyant upon the sea, and stands out boldly to a great height, as -is represented in the cut of the Icebergs. - -I will tell you of a perilous situation in which I was placed in my -younger days, when I went a voyage to Greenland in a whale ship. It was -at the end of the fishing season, and our ship was the last but one -of the oil traders left in those seas; we had been very unsuccessful, -having only taken five small whales, and we were anxious to amend our -ill luck by tarrying after all the other ships had sailed, in hopes -of better success. We were gently sailing about in search of whales -amidst the broken ice when there suddenly arose a rather brisk breeze, -at which time our ship was situated between two icebergs,--one of them -very high and resembling a lofty mountain, and the other considerably -smaller. - -Well, at the time the breeze sprung up, the large iceberg was to the -windward of us, that is, on that side from whence the wind blew, and -having a very large surface which caught the wind, it came sailing -towards us very fast. - -The vast bulk of this iceberg sheltered the smaller one, which was -to the leeward of us, so that it did not move in the least, and we -who were between the two, were completely becalmed. The ship was not -advancing a knot in an hour, and we could do nothing whatever to help -ourselves. We were in the greatest dismay, and could only consider -the way in which we should meet our entire destruction. The larger -mountain of ice continued to bear down upon us, and in a few minutes -our vessel was crushed between it and the smaller one, as if it had -been put in a huge smith's vice. - -Fortunately, however, for us, the two icebergs clung together, the -greater one impelling the lesser one forward, and we thus had time to -get out of the ship all our sea-chests, a large quantity of cordage, -nearly all our provisions, and everything portable; but the smaller -iceberg soon shifted round the large one and let our ship loose, which -instantly sank, and we, being on the small iceberg, were left floating -on the ocean with despair staring us in the face. Our despair, however, -was soon put to flight, for we perceived a ship at a short distance, to -which we made signal, and they came to our assistance. - -But, now I come to a part of the event which I grieve to record.--The -captain and crew of the vessel which came to our succour, seeing that -we had no other alternative, thought they could make an easy prey of -us, and before they would consent to save us, required that we should -give up to them all the things which we had been enabled to rescue -from our wrecked ship!--In such circumstances you need not ask what -we did,--life is sweet, it is said, and the pitiless prospect of the -frozen regions around us, sharpened our appetite for the enjoyment of -it, and we surrendered all but the clothes in which we stood. - -Shall I tell you the place where these savages came from? No. I will -only tell you that it lies in about 56 degrees North latitude, by 4-1/2 -West longitude; you may, if you please, find its name by looking in the -map. - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -THE STORY OF A LONG JOURNEY OVER THE ICE. - - -[Illustration] - -The Esquimaux live in the most northern parts of America, where there -is hardly anything but ice and snow to be seen from year's end to -year's end. They build their houses of snow, and make their longest -journeys in sledges upon ice along the sea-shore. - -You, who have been used to a very different kind of life, may wonder -how they can enjoy themselves, or even endure existence in such -inhospitable regions. But I can assure you they love their native -country so much, that they could by no means be happy out of it; and -their pleasures are real pleasures, though they would not be pleasures -to you. And thus you may learn that God wishes everybody to be happy, -and enables them to be so if they choose to act according to the light -which He has given them, and not be ever struggling for something which -they _cannot_, and therefore _ought_ not, to possess. - -And not only do the natives of these frozen countries endure perpetual -frost and snow, but good men have chosen to go and live among them for -the purpose of teaching the natives the doctrines of Christianity. -I shall relate to you a most interesting narrative of some of these -men who were Moravians, and it will give you a better notion of the -character of these parts of the world, and of the sort of life men -lead in them, than anything I could you of my own, for the story is -extremely well told. - -"Brother Samuel Liebisch was entrusted with the general care of the -brethren's missions on the coast of Labrador, and the duties of his -office required a visit to Okkak, the most northern of our settlements, -and about one hundred and fifty English miles distant from Nain, the -place where he resided. Brother William Turner being appointed to -accompany him, they left Nain on March the 11th, 1782, early in the -morning, with very clear weather, the stars shining with uncommon -lustre. The sledge was driven by the baptized Esquimaux Mark, and -another sledge with Esquimaux joined company. - -"An Esquimaux sledge is drawn by a species of dogs, not unlike a wolf -in shape. Like them, they never bark, but howl disagreeably. They -are kept by the Esquimaux in greater or larger packs or teams, in -proportion to the affluence of the master. They quietly submit to be -harnessed for their work, and are treated with little mercy by the -heathen Esquimaux, who make them do hard duty for the small quantity -of food they allow them. This chiefly consists in offal, old skins, -entrails, such parts of whale-flesh as are unfit for other use, rotten -whale-fins, &c., and if they are not provided with this kind of dogs' -meat, they leave them to go and seek dead fish or muscles upon the -beach. - -[Illustration] - -"When pinched with hunger they will swallow almost anything, and on -a journey it is necessary to secure the harness within the snow-house -over night, lest by devouring it, they should render it impossible -to proceed in the morning. When the travellers arrive at their -night-quarters, and the dogs are unharnessed, they are left to burrow -in the snow, where they please, and in the morning are sure to come -at their driver's call, when they receive some food. Their strength -and speed, even with an hungry stomach, is astonishing. In fastening -them to the sledge, care is taken not to let them go abreast. They are -tied by separate thongs, of unequal lengths, to an horizontal bar on -the fore-part of the sledge; an old knowing one leads the way, running -ten or twenty paces ahead, directed by the driver's whip, which is of -great length, and can be well managed only by an Esquimaux. The other -dogs follow like a flock of sheep. If one of them receives a lash, he -generally bites his neighbour, and the bite goes round. - -[Illustration: PLATE XII. - -ESCAPE ON THE ICE] - -"To return to our travellers: the two sledges contained five men, one -woman, and a child. All were in good spirits, and appearances being -much in their favour, they hoped to reach Okkak in safety in two or -three days. The tract over the frozen sea was in the best possible -order, and they went with ease at the rate of six or seven miles an -hour. After they had passed the islands in the bay of Nain, they kept -at a considerable distance from the coast, both to gain the smoothest -part of the ice, and to weather the high rocky promontory of Kiglapeit. - -[Illustration] - -"About eight o'clock they met a sledge with Esquimaux turning in from -the sea. After the usual salutation, the Esquimaux alighting, held -some conversation, as is their general practice, the result of which -was, that some hints were thrown out by the strange Esquimaux, that it -might be better to return. However, as the missionaries saw no reason -whatever for it, and only suspected that the Esquimaux wished to enjoy -the company of their friends a little longer, they proceeded. - -"After some time their own Esquimaux hinted that there was a ground -swell under the ice. It was then hardly perceptible, except on lying -down and applying the ear close to the ice, when a hollow disagreeable -grating and roaring noise was heard, as if ascending from the abyss. -The weather remained clear, except towards the east, where a bank of -light clouds appeared, interspersed with some dark streaks. But the -wind being strong from the North-west, nothing less than a sudden -change of weather was expected. - -"The sun had now reached its height, and there was as yet little or -no alteration in the appearance of the sky. But the motion of the sea -under the ice had grown more perceptible, so as rather to alarm the -travellers, and they began to think it prudent to keep closer to the -shore. The ice had cracks and large fissures in many places, some -of which formed chasms of one or two feet wide; but as they are not -uncommon even in its best state, and the dogs easily leap over them, -the sledge following without danger, they are only terrible to new -comers. - -"As soon as the sun declined towards the west, the wind increased and -rose to a storm, the bank of clouds from the east began to ascend, and -the dark streaks to put themselves in motion against the wind. The snow -was violently driven about by partial whirlwinds, both on the ice, and -from off the peaks of the high mountains and filled the air. At the -same time the ground swell had increased so much, that its effect upon -the ice became very extraordinary and alarming. The sledges, instead -of gliding along smoothly upon an even surface, sometimes ran with -violence after the dogs, and shortly after seemed with difficulty to -ascend the rising hill, for the elasticity of so vast a body of ice, of -many leagues square, supported by a troubled sea, though in some places -three or four yards in thickness, would, in some degree, occasion an -undulatory motion not unlike that of a sheet of paper accommodating -itself to the surface of a rippling stream. Noises were now likewise -distinctly heard in many directions, like the report of cannon, owing -to the bursting of the ice at some distance. - -"The Esquimaux therefore drove with all haste towards the shore, -intending to take up their night-quarters on the south side of the -Nivak. But as it plainly appeared that the ice would break and disperse -in the open sea, Mark advised to push forward to the north of the -Nivak, from whence he hoped the track to Okkak might still remain -entire. - -"To this proposal the company agreed, but when the sledges approached -the coast, the prospect before them was truly terrific. The ice -having broken loose from the rocks, was forced up and down, grinding -and breaking into a thousand pieces against the precipices, with a -tremendous noise, which added to the raging of the wind, and the snow -driving about in the air, deprived the travellers almost of the power -of hearing and seeing anything distinctly. - -"To make the land at any risk, was now the only hope left, but it was -with the utmost difficulty the frightened dogs could be forced forward, -the whole body of ice sinking frequently below the surface of the -rocks, then rising above it. As the only moment to land was that, when -it gained the level of the coast, the attempt was extremely nice and -hazardous. However, by God's mercy, it succeeded; both sledges gained -the shore, and were drawn up the beach with much difficulty. - -"The travellers had hardly time to reflect with gratitude to God on -their safety, when that part of the ice from which they had just now -made good their landing burst asunder, and the water forcing itself -from below, covered and precipitated it into the sea. In an instant, -as if by a signal given, the whole mass of ice, extending for several -miles from the coast, and as far as the eye could reach, began to burst -and be overwhelmed by the immense waves towering above. - -"The sight was tremendous and awfully grand; the large fields of ice, -raising themselves out of the water, striking against each other, and -plunging into the deep with a violence not to be described, and a noise -like the discharge of innumerable batteries of heavy guns. The darkness -of the night, the roaring of the wind and sea, and the dashing of the -waves and ice against the rocks, filled the travellers with sensations -of awe and horror, so as almost to deprive them of the power of -utterance. They stood overwhelmed with astonishment at their miraculous -escape, and even the heathen Esquimaux expressed gratitude to God for -their deliverance. - -"The Esquimaux now began to build a snow-house, about thirty paces from -the beach; but before they had finished their work, the waves reached -the place where the sledges were secured, and they were with difficulty -saved from being washed into the sea. - -[Illustration] - -"About nine o'clock all of them crept into the snow-house, thanking -God for this place of refuge; for the wind was piercingly cold and so -violent, that it required great strength to be able to stand against it. - -"Before they entered this habitation, they could not help once more -turning to the sea, which was now free from ice, and beheld with -horror, mingled with gratitude, the enormous waves, driving furiously -before the wind, like huge castles, and approaching the shore, where -with dreadful noise, they dashed against the rocks, foaming and filling -the air with the spray. The whole company now got their supper, and -having sung an evening hymn in the Esquimaux language, lay down to rest -about ten o'clock. They lay so close, that if any one stirred, his -neighbours were roused by it. - -"The Esquimaux were soon fast asleep, but brother Liebisch could not -get any rest, partly on account of the dreadful roaring of the wind and -sea, and partly owing to a sore throat, which gave him great pain. Both -missionaries were also much engaged in their minds in contemplating -the dangerous situations into which they had been brought, and amidst -all thankfulness for their great deliverance from immediate death, -could not but cry unto their Heavenly Father for his help in this time -of need. - -"The wakefulness of the missionaries proved the deliverance of the -whole party from sudden destruction. About two o'clock in the morning, -brother Liebisch perceived some salt water to drop from the roof of the -snow-house upon his lips. Though rather alarmed on tasting the salt, -which could not proceed from a common spray, he kept quiet, till the -same dropping being more frequently repeated, just as he was about to -give the alarm, on a sudden a tremendous surf broke close to the house, -discharging a quantity of water into it; a second soon followed, and -carried away the slab of snow placed as a door before the entrance. The -missionaries immediately called aloud to the sleeping Esquimaux, to -rise and quit the place. They jumped up in an instant, one of them with -a large knife cut a passage through the side of the house, and each -seizing some part of the baggage, it was thrown out upon a higher part -of the beach, brother Turner assisting the Esquimaux. Brother Liebisch -and the woman and child fled to a neighbouring eminence. The latter -were wrapt up by the Esquimaux in a large skin, and the former took -shelter behind a rock, for it was impossible to stand against the wind, -snow, and sleet. Scarcely had the company retreated to the eminence -when an enormous wave carried away the whole house, but nothing of -consequence was lost." - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -THE JOURNEY OVER THE ICE CONTINUED. - - -"They now found themselves a second time delivered from the most -imminent danger of death; but the remaining part of the night, -before the Esquimaux could seek and find another more safe place -for a snow-house, were hours of great trial to mind and body, and -filled every one with painful reflections. Before the day dawned, the -Esquimaux cut a hole into a large drift of snow, to screen the woman -and child, and the two missionaries. - -"Brother Liebisch, however, could not bear the closeness of the air, -and was obliged to sit down at the entrance, where the Esquimaux -covered him with skins, to keep him warm, as the pain in his throat was -very great. - -"As soon as it was light, they built another snow-house, and miserable -as such an accommodation is at all times, they were glad and thankful -to creep into it. It was about eight feet square and six or seven feet -high. They now congratulated each other on their deliverance, but found -themselves in a very bad plight. - -"The missionaries had taken but a small stock of provisions with them, -merely sufficient for the short journey to Okkak. Joel, his wife and -child, and Kassigiak, the sorcerer, had nothing at all. They were -obliged, therefore, to divide the small stock into daily portions, -especially as there appeared no hopes of soon quitting this place and -reaching any dwellings. Only two ways were left for this purpose, -either to attempt the land passage across the wild and unfrequented -mountain Kiglapeit, or wait for a new ice track over the sea, which it -might require much time to form; they therefore resolved to serve out -no more than a biscuit and a half per day. - -"But as this would not by any means satisfy an Esquimaux's stomach, the -missionaries offered to give one of their dogs to be killed for them, -on condition, that in case distress obliged them to resort again to -that expedient, the next dog killed should be one of the Esquimaux's -team. They replied that they should be glad of it, if they had a kettle -to boil the flesh in, but as that was not the case, they must even -suffer hunger, for they could not, even now, eat dogs' flesh in its raw -state. The missionaries now remained in the snow-house, and every day -endeavoured to boil so much water over their lamp, as might serve for -two dishes of coffee a-piece. Through mercy, they were preserved in -good health, and brother Liebisch quite unexpectedly recovered on the -first day of his sore throat. The Esquimaux also kept up their spirits, -and even the rough heathen Kassigiak declared, that it was proper to -be thankful that they were still alive, adding, that if they had -remained a very little longer upon the ice yesterday, all their bones -would have been broken to pieces in a short time. He had, however, -his heels frozen, and suffered considerable pain. In the evening, the -missionaries sung an hymn with the Esquimaux, and continued to do it -every morning and evening. God was present with them, and comforted -their hearts by his peace. - -"Towards noon of the thirteenth, the weather cleared up and the sea -was seen, as far as the eye could reach, quite freed from ice. Mark -and Joel went up the hills to reconnoitre, and returned with the -disagreeable news that not a morsel of ice was to be seen even from -thence, in any direction, and that it had even been forced away from -the coast at Nuasornak. They were, therefore, of opinion, that we could -do nothing but force our way across the mountain Kiglapeit. - -"To-day Kassigiak complained much of hunger, probably to obtain from -the missionaries a larger portion than the common allowance. They -represented to him, that they had no more themselves, and reproved him -for his impatience. Whenever the victuals were distributed, he always -swallowed his portion very greedily, and put out his hand for what he -saw the missionaries had left, but was easily kept from any further -attempt by serious reproof. - -"The Esquimaux eat to-day an old sack made of fish-skin, which proved -indeed a dry and miserable dish. While they were at this singular -meal, they kept repeating, in a low humming tone, 'you was a sack but -a little while ago, and now you are food for us.' Towards evening -some flakes of ice were discovered driving towards the coast, and on -the fourteenth in the morning, the sea was covered with them. But the -weather was again very strong, and the Esquimaux could not quit the -snow-house, which made them very low spirited and melancholy. Kassigiak -suggested, that it would be well to attempt to make good weather, by -which he meant to practise his art, as a sorcerer, to make the weather -good. - -"The missionaries opposed it, and told him that his heathenish -practices were of no use, but that the weather would become favourable -as soon as it should please God. Kassigiak then asked, whether _Jesus_ -could make good weather. He was told, that to _Jesus_ was given all -power in heaven and earth; upon which he demanded, that he should -be applied to. Another time he said, I shall tell my countrymen at -Seglek. The missionaries replied. 'Tell them that in the midst of this -affliction, we placed our only hope and trust in Jesus Christ our -Saviour, who loves all mankind, and has shed his blood to redeem them -from eternal misery.' - -"To-day the Esquimaux began to eat an old, filthy, and worn-out skin, -which had served them for a mattress. - -"On the fifteenth the weather continued extremely boisterous, and the -Esquimaux appeared every now and then to sink under disappointment. -But they possess one good quality, namely, a power of going to sleep -when they please, and, if need be, they will sleep for days and nights -together. - -"In the evening the sky became clear, and their hopes revived. Mark -and Joel went out to reconnoitre, and brought word that the ice had -acquired a considerable degree of solidity, and might soon be fit for -use. The poor dogs had, meanwhile, fasted for nearly four days, but -now in the prospect of a speedy release, the missionaries allowed to -each a few morsels of food. The temperature of the air having been -rather mild, it occasioned a new source of distress, for by the warm -exhalations of the inhabitants, the roof of the snow-house got to be in -a melting state; which occasioned a continual dropping, and by degrees -made every thing soaking wet. The missionaries report, that they -considered this the greatest hardship they had to endure, for they had -not a dry thread about them, nor a dry place to lie down in. - -"On the sixteenth early, the sky cleared, but the fine particles of -snow were driven about like clouds. Joel and Kassigiak resolved to -pursue their journey to Okkak, by the way of Nuasornak, and set out, -with the wind and snow full in their faces. Mark could not resolve to -proceed farther north, because, in his opinion, the violence of the -wind had driven the ice off the coast at Tikkerasuk, so as to render it -impossible to land; but he thought he might yet proceed to the south -with safety, and get round Kiglapeit. The missionaries endeavoured to -persuade him to follow the above mentioned company to Okkak, but it was -in vain; and they did not feel at liberty to insist upon it, not being -sufficiently acquainted with the circumstances. Their present distress -dictated the necessity of venturing something to reach the habitations -of men, and yet they were rather afraid of passing over the newly -frozen sea under Kiglapeit, and could not immediately determine what to -do. Brother Turner therefore went again with Mark to examine the ice, -and both seemed satisfied that it would hold. They therefore came at -last to a resolution to return to Nain. - -"On the seventeenth, the wind had considerably increased, with heavy -showers of snow and sleet, but they set off at half-past ten o'clock in -the afternoon. Mark ran all the way round Kiglapeit, before the sledge, -that he might find a good track, and about one o'clock, they were quite -out of danger and reached the bay. Here they found a good track upon -smooth ice, made a meal of the remnant of their provisions, and got -some warm coffee. Thus refreshed, they resolved to proceed without -stopping, till they reached Nain, where they arrived at twelve o'clock -at night. - -"The brethren at Nain rejoiced exceedingly to see them return, for by -several hints of the Esquimaux, who first met them going out to sea, -and who then in their own obscure way, had endeavoured to warn them -of their danger of the ground-swell, but had not been attended to, -their fellow-missionaries, and especially their wives, had been much -terrified. One of these Esquimaux, whose wife had made some article of -dress for brother Liebisch, whom they called Samuel, addressed her in -the following manner:--'I should be glad of the payment for my wife's -work.' 'Wait a little,' answered sister Liebisch, 'and when my husband -returns he will settle with you, for I am unacquainted with the bargain -made between you.' 'Samuel and William,' replied the Esquimaux, 'will -not return any more to Nain.' 'How not return! what makes you say so?' -After some pause the Esquimaux replied in a low tone, 'Samuel and -William are no more! all their bones are broken, and in the stomachs of -the sharks.' - -"Terrified at this alarming account, sister Liebisch called in the -rest of the family, and the Esquimaux was examined as to his meaning; -but his answers were little less obscure. He seemed so certain of the -destruction of the missionaries, that he was with difficulty prevailed -on to wait some time for their return. He could not believe that they -could have escaped the effects of so furious a tempest, considering the -course they were taking. - -"It may easily be conceived, with what gratitude to God the whole -family at Nain bid them welcome. During the storm, they had considered -with some dread, what might be the fate of their brethren, though at -Nain its violence was not felt so much as on a coast, unprotected by -any islands. Added to this, the hints of the Esquimaux had considerably -increased their apprehensions for their safety, and their fears began -to get the better of their hopes. All therefore joined most fervently -in praise and thanksgiving to God, for this signal deliverance." - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -THE WHALE. - - -It seems strange that the largest animal in nature should live in -these regions, where you would think everything must be starved by the -cold. But so it is, and it should lead you to reflect, how wonderfully -the principle which animates living beings, by the outward form and -constitution which it gives to the bodies of animals, adapts them to -support the various circumstances in which they are placed. - -There are many kinds of whale which all agree in these particulars. -They are very much larger than any other creatures existing; they live -in the sea and yet suckle their young with milk, and have warm blood -and lungs like land animals, so that they can only breathe by putting -their heads above water. Some people have doubted whether it was proper -to call the whale a fish, but on the whole it is certainly more like -fishes than it is like any other of the great divisions of animals, -seeing that it swims with fins, and cannot live out of the water. - -[Illustration] - -The Greenland whale (naturalists call it _Balena Mysticetus_,) is the -most important of the varieties, as it is the one which produces train -oil in the largest quantities, and whalebone. In common with all the -others, it is a most awkward looking creature. Here is a picture of -one. Its usual length is from 40 to 60 feet; and the circumference of -its body about 40. It not unfrequently weighs 60 or 70 tons, which is -more than the weight of 180 fat oxen. - -The tail is commonly about 6 feet long, and 25 feet wide. It lies flat -upon the water, and is what the creature principally uses in swimming, -for the fins near the head appear to be used merely to keep the body -steady in the water. It is also a weapon of defence, and possesses -prodigious strength, as you shall hear by and by. - -The inside of the mouth is, perhaps, the most wonderful part of the -whale, both from its size and construction. I was once in one, which -was 15 feet in length and 7 feet wide. - -It is from the mouth that the _Whalebone_, as it is called, comes. -The jaws are not furnished with teeth, but in their place there is -something which forms a curious sort of shrimp-trap, which I will -describe to you. The whalebone is ranged along in blades upon the jaws, -like the laths of a Venetian blind, and the inner edge of each blade -is furnished with a fringe of fibrous stuff almost like hair. - -The natural position of the whale's mouth seems to be open, and it -mostly swims along or lies near the surface, with its lower jaw hanging -down. Little fish and insects, most of them of the smallest size, -thus come in contact with the smooth edge of the blades of bone, slip -between them, and become entangled in the hairy fringe of the inner -edge, so that they can never get out again. When the whale thinks he -has got enough in his mouth, he immediately raises his enormous lower -jaw and swallows. One of his mouthfuls must often consist of millions -of living creatures, respecting the kinds of which I shall have -something to tell you in a future page. - -I told you that he was obliged to rise to the surface of the water to -breathe. You would like to see him ascend for this purpose, and snort -out a jet of thick vapour to the height of twenty feet, or more, and -making such a noise, as may be heard at a distance of several miles. - -[Illustration] - -Under the skin, all over the body, there is a covering of yellowish -fat of about a foot thick, which keeps the animal warm, answering the -same purpose as the fur does on land animals. It is necessary, because -the whale is not cold in the inside like other fish, but has warm, -red blood, which is of a higher temperature even than that of a human -being. This is another circumstance which becomes the more remarkable -from the cold climate in which he lives. - -This fat is generally called blubber, and is what the oil comes from. -When first it is taken from the whale, it has not the least unpleasant -smell, and it is not till the cargo is unstowed that a whale ship is at -all disagreeable. - -The largest sort of whale is called the _razor back_, from a ridge that -runs along his back. They are often 100 feet in length. I never saw one -of these taken, but the sailors told me that they were very difficult -to come near, and after all, not worth the trouble of killing, for they -have very little blubber. - -Then there is the Cachalot, or Sperm Whale, which is smaller, and much -more slender than the common whale. It has teeth, and is of a very -quarrelsome temper. It often fights with its own kind, and I have seen -several of them which had been wounded in the jaws, and made blind by -such conflicts. It is from the head of this animal that spermaceti is -obtained. - -A number of vessels are sent out every year to catch these great -creatures, and this is the way in which they manage their work. Every -vessel is furnished with five or six boats which are hung on the sides -of the vessel in such a way as to be easily lowered into the water on -the shortest notice. One or two of the boats are usually kept upon the -look out, in each of which there is a harpoon attached to a rope above -700 feet in length, and about as thick as a man's thumb. This is the -shape of the harpoon. - -[Illustration] - -When they see a whale showing himself above the surface of the water, -the man who is to throw the harpoon, stations himself at the bow, and -the rest pull away as fast as they are able till they approach the -whale as near as possible, and this is often to within a very short -distance in consequence of his being slower of hearing than most other -animals. - -The harpooner then throws the harpoon with all his might, and if he -is lucky, it goes through the poor creature's skin and blubber, into -his flesh. The moment he feels the wound, he mostly sinks to a great -depth, and drags out the line which is carefully coiled at the bottom -of the boat, at a tremendous rate. One man stands by with a mop to keep -the edge of the boat over which the rope runs constantly wet, lest -the friction should set the boat on fire, and another holds a hatchet -ready to chop it in two in case it should become entangled. If it goes -out smoothly, they add lines as long as they are necessary: and on -one occasion, for a whale which was very refractory, Captain Scoresby -actually joined together three miles and three quarters of rope, the -weight of which was nearly two tons! Was not this a great fishing-line? - -As soon as the whale is struck, they hoist a flag, and the men who are -in the ship, and constantly upon the look out, immediately come to -their assistance. If the signal is made when any of them are asleep, up -they come with their clothes under their arms, and dress afterwards -as they can, for not a moment is to be lost. This is no joke, when the -cold is more than thirty degrees below the freezing point. - -[Illustration] - -However, they are obliged to go; and as many boats as there may be, -then watch anxiously for the re-appearance of the whale on the surface. -As soon as he shows himself, the men of the other boats immediately -strike their harpoons into him, and so secure him till he is faint from -loss of blood, and at last comes up to the surface, spouting out blood -mixed with the vapour from his nostrils. They then despatch him with an -instrument called a lance, and the great carcass rolls over upon its -back. It is afterwards lashed by strong ropes to the side of the ship, -and the blubber is cut up into lumps of convenient size, and stowed in -casks. - -It occasionally happens, after the harpooner has thrown his weapon, -that the creature in agony, flaps about his tail with tremendous -violence before he goes down. Many boats have been upset in this -manner, and Captain Scoresby relates an instance of a boat being dashed -completely in two. - -Some people have thought the whale a very stupid creature, but there -does not seem much ground for this notion, though we can never be in a -condition to see much of its instinctive wisdom. As far as we can see, -it is the very best thing it could do when struck by the harpoon, to -go downwards as it does; and this seems to prove that it has quite its -share of intelligence; and it is still more remarkable, that if a mass -of ice be near when it is pursued, either before or after it has been -struck, it gets under it as quickly as possible, and often thus baffles -its pursuers. - -But the most interesting thing in the character of the whale is, its -extreme love for its offspring, and a cruel use is often made by the -whalers of this beautiful disposition. They often strike a _cub_ or -_sucker_, as they call the young whales, which would not be worth -taking itself, because they know its mother will instantly expose -herself to an attack in its defence. You shall hear what Captain -Scoresby says on this, "When the young whale is struck, its mother -joins it at the surface of the water, whenever it has occasion to -rise for respiration; encourages it to swim off; assists its flight, -by taking it under her fin; and seldom deserts it while life remains. -She is then dangerous to approach; but affords frequent opportunities -for attack. She loses all regard for her own safety, in anxiety for -the preservation of her young;--dashes through the midst of her -enemies;--despises the danger that threatens her;--and even voluntarily -remains with her offspring, after various attacks on herself from the -harpoons of the fishers. In June 1811, one of my harpooners struck a -sucker, with the hope of its leading to the capture of the mother. -Presently she arose close by the 'fast-boat;' and seizing the young -one, dragged about a hundred fathoms of line out of the boat with -remarkable force and velocity. Again she arose to the surface; darted -furiously to and fro; frequently stopped short, or suddenly changed her -direction, and gave every possible intimation of extreme agony. For a -length of time she continued thus to act, though closely pursued by the -boats; and, inspired with courage and resolution by her concern for her -offspring, seemed regardless of the danger which surrounded her. At -length, one of the boats approached so near, that a harpoon was hove at -her. It hit, but did not attach itself. A second harpoon was struck; -this also failed to penetrate: but a third was more effectual, and -held. Still she did not attempt to escape, but allowed other boats to -approach; so that, in a few minutes, three more harpoons were fastened; -and, in the course of an hour afterwards, she was killed." - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -A VOYAGE ON A TROPICAL SEA. - - -To you, my little friends, who have always lived in a climate in which -it seems as if the wind changed, and it became sun-shiny or cloudy, wet -or dry, cold or hot, without any law or regularity, it is something -strange to hear of places where the inhabitants know almost to a day -that the wind will blow constantly in one direction during so many -months in the year, and constantly in some other direction during the -rest: and where, with equal certainty, they know when to expect rain -and when fine weather. - -The truth is, our changeable weather is under the influence of laws -quite as certain and fixed as their uniform weather is, only that there -are more partial causes operating in our climate, so that the effects -are not so strictly periodical. We know as little about the way in -which the laws operate in one case, as in the other. - -The winds that always blow in one direction are called the Trade Winds, -and those which blow in one direction regularly during a certain -portion of the year, are called monsoons. They make navigation in some -parts of the ocean, very certain, and you cannot think how odd it seems -to a young sailor the first time he sails in them. He leads then a -lazy sort of life; there is no tacking about, but day after day he has -nothing to do but just such things as might be done on land. - -When the sailors of Columbus first found themselves in the Trade Wind -blowing from the eastward, having sailed before it for many days, they -gave themselves up to despair, because they thought they should never -be able to make their way back against it to their dear native country. -They did not know that it would by and by blow quite as certainly in -another direction. - -These uniform winds blow only within a certain distance of the equator, -and the cause of them is this. The heat of the climate there occasions -the air next to the surface of the earth to be always ascending, and -other air rushes in from other parts of the world to supply its place. -The motion of the earth upon its axis operates with this, by bringing -the parts of its surface successively in contact with any certain point -in the atmosphere, which does not revolve so rapidly as the earth -itself, and a fixed direction is thus given to the wind. - -But it is still much more dull to find one's self in a calm on a -tropical sea. Only imagine to yourselves a stagnant and shoreless -sea, often with unsightly masses of sea-weed floating on it, a sky -constantly of a gloomy-looking red, and nothing to be seen day after -day except this sky and sea; insupportable thirst and bad water to -quench it, and the ship all the time rocking to and fro with a nasty -dull motion, and the ropes and sails idly flapping against the mast and -yards. - -But though I have seen and felt all this, I cannot describe it to you -so well as the poet, so I will give you his words. - - "Down dropt the breeze, the sails dropt down, - 'Twas sad as sad could be, - And we did speak only to break - The silence of the sea. - - "All in a hot and copper sky, - The bloody sun at noon, - Right up above the mast did stand - No bigger than the moon. - - "Day after day, day after day, - We stuck, nor breath nor motion; - As idle as a painted ship - Upon a painted ocean. - - "Water, water, everywhere, - And all the boards did shrink; - Water, water, everywhere, - Nor any drop to drink." - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -THE WATER-SPOUT. - - -Well! one morning when we were only a few leagues off the West Coast of -Africa, to the South of the Cape Verd Islands, we thought we were going -to have just such a calm as the poet has described. There had been a -violent storm during the night, but every breath of wind had died away, -and left a long sleepy swell upon the sea. - -About nine o'clock, we noticed a cloud rising, or rather seeming to -form, at some distance from us, and just below it a white spot of foam -appeared on the surface of the water, and the waves raged over a little -round space in a way that made me feel I don't know how, for I had -never seen such a thing before. The cloud grew blacker and blacker, and -presently seemed to move down towards the sea and swell out in the same -direction, as if to provoke the waves below, which seemed straining up -towards it. - -[Illustration: PLATE XIII. - -WATER SPOUTS] - -There suddenly seemed to grow out of the middle of the spot of waves, -a complete pillar of water of a tapering shape, and at the same moment -the lower part of the cloud seemed to condense and turn to water, and -shot downwards in a cone to meet it. They united and formed one pillar, -almost as distinct as if it had been of ice instead of water. You will -see a correct representation of this in the picture. - -The size at the base must have been very large, not less than 250 feet -in diameter, but it tapered off so much that at the middle it was not -more than three or four feet. Above the middle it increased in size, -and its solidity seemed to get gradually less till it ended in a great -black cloud. Its height might have been about 700 feet. - -Its form changed considerably. It generally seemed as if it was -composed of water sucked upwards in a spiral direction, and looked -almost like a great cable; but now and then it looked like a simple -hollow tube. - -Sometimes it inclined a little one way, and then another; and sometimes -it was very considerably bent, and then suddenly straightened itself -again. - -When the ship was nearest to it, we heard a noise from it like the -rushing of a waterfall, and before it was over, heavy rain came on with -lightning, but no thunder. The wind all the time was very unsteady, -though it was not violent. - -While we were looking at it, two smaller ones formed at some distance -under very nearly the same circumstances. One of them stood quite still -for some seconds, and then disappeared; but the other moved steadily on -in a straight line, for several minutes. - -The great one continued moving also very slowly for nearly half an -hour, and then seemed to snap in two, and one half sank rapidly into -the sea, as if it had been unhooked from above, and the other half -remained hanging from the cloud for some time, and then curled upwards -and disappeared, throwing down a heavy torrent of rain. - -I have seen many water-spouts since, in my voyages over the great -ocean, but have never been so struck with the appearance of any one as -of this. - -There is a common notion that a cannon fired at a water-spout, will -disperse it by making a great concussion of the air; but I do not -think that this is true, unless the water-spout be very small. At all -events, it was not true in this case, for we fired right at the large -one several times, and it took no effect except in splashing the water -about as the ball went through. - -It is also generally imagined that they are very dangerous to ships, -and if they come close, that they throw such a quantity of water into -them as to sink them. I have somewhere read an account of a vessel -having once been put in danger by one off the Coast of Guinea, and two -or three of the men being washed overboard, and I once saw the sails -and deck of a vessel, made very wet by a small one, myself. But my own -opinion is, that there is not much to be dreaded from them, for they -are not a solid mass of water, but merely condensed vapour in the form -of a tube, with a hollow space in the middle. And I think if you were -right under one of them, it would be no worse than rain descending in -very large drops. - -[Illustration] - -Once I saw a much smaller water-spout on land. It was a gusty, cloudy -day, and the wind had changed several times, when a dark cloud at some -distance from where I was, extended downwards till it came nearly to a -point. - -It seemed to reach about three-fourths of the distance from the cloud -to the ground, and moved along slowly for about ten minutes. When I -afterwards made inquiry of the people over whose houses it passed, they -told me that it had let fall in its progress a tremendous quantity of -rain, so as considerably to injure several houses. - - -HOW PARLEY SUPPOSES WATER-SPOUTS TO BE CAUSED. - -I suppose you would now like me to tell you how water-spouts are -caused. I wish I could, for your sakes; and, besides, I should very -much like to know myself. I have, however, a tolerable guess upon the -subject, and that I will tell you of. - -I dare say you have often seen little eddies of wind which take up -dust, straw, and other light substances, and carry them up, twirling -them round in a spiral direction like a cork-screw. - -When these occur on a larger scale, they are called whirlwinds, and are -often very destructive in their effects, unroofing houses, and doing -various other mischief. They are sometimes occasioned by draughts of -air being disturbed in their course by mountains or hills, and meeting -each other. But the largest are caused by two or more currents of wind, -produced by what ordinarily influences the direction of the wind, -meeting from different quarters, and then twisting round each other -just as two strings, with weights at their ends, would do if you swung -them forcibly together so as to meet about the middle. - -A whirlwind occurred some years ago, near where I was living; it lasted -about ten minutes, and produced some very curious effects. It first met -with a milk-maid, who was carrying a pail of milk upon her head, and -tore off her bonnet along with the pail, and carried both to a great -distance, where they were not found till some days afterwards. It next -twisted a wagon in pieces, and blew most of the fragments over a wall; -it unroofed a house, and carried some of the tiles to a great distance; -next it dashed through the window of the room where I was sitting, -swept all the ornaments off the mantelpiece, and made strange havock -with some of the furniture. It then passed on to a neighbouring park, -where it tore up several trees. The wind had not been extremely violent -before, neither was it immediately afterwards. - -Suppose a cloud happens to be exactly in the point of union of two -currents of wind, meeting as they did in this whirlwind, it then -becomes twisted in along with them, and partially condensed; and if -it is over the land, this is all that seems necessary to form the -water-spout. - -And if it happens to be over the sea, the wind, as it eddies round, -works up the waves into a ferment, and much spray and foam is produced, -which is twisted in with the whirlwind in the same manner as the cloud, -and carried upwards to meet it. - -Whether this is just the way in which the thing takes place, or not, -it is pretty certain that the water-spout is caused by the meeting of -winds from various quarters, from what Dr. Franklin tells us in one of -his letters which I read the other day. He says that a sailor informed -him that he was in one of three vessels which chanced to be placed as -at the three corners of a triangle; a water-spout was formed between -them which seemed to be to the leeward of each of them. - -[Illustration] - -The cut will enable you to understand what I mean. The star in the -middle represents the water-spout, and the three arrows the directions -in which each of the three vessels found the wind come, which shows -that three diverse currents of air all set towards the water-spout. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -CORAL REEFS AND ISLANDS. - - -When we were sailing through the Pacific Ocean, I saw a great many -coral reefs and islands; and perhaps there is hardly one of the -wonderful things which I have seen in my travels, that I remember with -more pleasure, or love more to think about, so I shall be glad to tell -you all I know of them. - -You are acquainted with the appearance of Coral, as you have often seen -pieces of it in cabinets, and employed as ornaments; and you therefore -know that it always abounds with little holes, but its form, and the -shape of these holes, vary considerably. Some of it occurs in branches, -like the branches of trees, and in consequence of this, and because -it was known to increase in size from time to time, it was taken for a -marine plant, before its nature was fully investigated. The openings -in this sort are placed in the form of stars, as you will see in this -little piece of one of the branches magnified. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration] - -Sometimes it is in large roundish masses, called brain stones, from its -resemblance to the brain of an animal; the openings are then long holes -placed in two rows between high ridges, like this. - -[Illustration] - -And a third form is found consisting of thin pieces, thinner than -writing paper, placed on edge, spreading out from a centre, or from a -line down the middle of a long strip, and the openings are then plain -deep furrows, running from the middle to the outside. - -[Illustration] - -There is also the precious red Coral of which beads and other trinkets -are made, found principally in the Mediterranean Sea, and several other -sorts, more or less rare. But what I have described to you are the -commonest. - -This curious substance extends over hundreds of miles in various parts -of the Tropical Seas, in islands of different forms. But before I -describe these to you, I must tell you what is known respecting the -little animals by which it is manufactured, for it is proved to be the -work of certain kinds of the little creatures called Polypes. - - -THE CORAL-MAKING POLYPES. - -The Polypes are a kind of animals apparently of very simple structure, -without bones, or shells, or heads, or brains. They have very large -mouths surrounded by a great number of _tentacula_, or feelers, which -are threads of flesh possessing the sense of touch in great perfection; -and to these _tentacula_ they owe the name _Polypes_, which comes from -two Greek words signifying _many feet_. The ancient naturalists who -named them, I suppose did not know but that they were feet. - -[Illustration: PLATE XIV. - -ACTINIÆ CORAL BUILDERS] - -If this was the case, they were not, however, quite right. Most kinds -of Polypes very seldom move from one place to another in any way, -but stick themselves upon a rock by means of the flat part of their -bodies, and there remain; and when they let go they generally suffer -themselves to be washed by the waves to some other place, where they -can conveniently fix again. If you have ever been at Brighton, or -at any other places by the sea side, for any length of time, I dare -say you have seen the _sea anemones_, or _sea flowers_, as they are -called, carried round by the fish people to show to their customers; -or possibly you may have seen them in the holes on the rocks. They are -proper Polypes, and the scientific name of them is _Actiniæ_. As they -lead their lazy lives as if they were rooted in the rock, when they are -hungry they spread out their tentacula to catch any little insects or -minute fish, such as crabs and shrimps, which may come in their way. -The instant they feel anything, they close in all their tentacula with -surprising force. It is worth while to put one's finger just in the -centre of one of these "flowers," to feel how strongly they can draw -anything in. I have seen one suck in a little crab half as large as its -own body, in this manner. - -When closed up they look an insensible lump of pulpy flesh, but when -their fringe of tentacula is expanded, they are very beautiful indeed, -and exhibit various rich colours. You may see them in each state in the -plate (fig. 1.), where one is represented closed up, and two are open. - -If one of these curious creatures is cut into several pieces in certain -directions, each piece will become an animal. You will say that this -seems more like a plant which is propagated by cuttings, than a proper -animal. But for all this, and although it only appears to possess -the same sort of sensibility, in regard to light and touch, as some -plants do, I can give you a very good reason for its being considered -as an animal,--it can move itself according to its own _will_, and -in choosing the time in which it moves, it exhibits instinctive -intelligence. When it finds its little inch of rock in any respect -inconvenient from its being too high above low water mark, or not -sufficiently in the way of the little creatures on which it wants to -satisfy its appetite, it sucks in a great quantity of water, and swells -itself out so as to become nearly as light as the water, and then -looses its hold and continues to float about till it comes in contact -with some more convenient home. When I first saw them thus full of -water, and carried about by the waves, I thought they were dead. - -Now the coral builders are all of the same general character as the -Actiniæ, in the construction of their bodies, their various colours, -great mouths surrounded by feelers, and habits of taking their meals. -But besides their being such wonderful architects, they differ from the -English creature in being very sociable, and living together in immense -companies. When you read of the Pyramids of Egypt, or of any other -great structures, you may justly think them wonderful proofs of what -the labours of many men may do when directed to a single object; but -here you have not houses, pyramids, cities, nor even mere islands, but -whole continents constructed by the combined labours of little insects. - -I cannot tell you, neither can any one else, in what manner these -little workmen perform their work. It is only certain that they have -some faculty by which they appropriate the particles of carbonate of -lime contained in the sea water, and dispose them in the various forms -I have mentioned to you. When the coral is in progress, it is coated -with a soft gluey sort of substance, and over the star-like clusters -of openings, there may be seen, when the creatures are hungry, little -rosettes of tentacula, more beautiful than you can conceive. - -In fig. 2 of the plate, you may see some of these animals showing their -rich rosettes on a piece of branch coral, such as is represented in the -first wood cut, page 204. - -There is another sort of branch coral, where the animal always lives at -the end of the branch, the whole of which it has to itself, and will -then spread out its tentacula in a star on the extremity, as you may -see in figs. 3 and 4. - -In fig. 5, you may see one of the animals which construct the sort of -coral represented in the cut, page 205. - -Since these little creatures can lay down their tentacula in the -openings of their stony houses, when they are not hungry, or when they -are alarmed by the approach of anything that would hurt them, they do -not want the tough skin with which the Actinia is covered, but have -bodies of a very soft and yielding texture. - - -FORMS OF THE CORAL REEFS. - -As I have now introduced to you, as well as I can by means of -description and pictures, the inhabitants of these wonderful submarine -continents, I shall now tell you something of the form in which they -arrange their habitations. Those that I saw about the Society and -Friendly Islands, were mostly in three different conditions. One kind -forms a nearly circular reef, sometimes with an opening in it. It is a -part of the common design of the Polypes always to make this opening -on the Leeward side, when the place is one in which any particular -wind blows during a great part of the year. I cannot tell you why -this is, but it is constantly observed wherever coral reefs are found. -This peculiarity makes the enclosed spaces of water, (which are called -Lagoons,) capital harbours for ships to anchor in, for they are nearly -always smooth, the windward side of the reef acting as a breakwater. -Here is a map of three reefs of this form, in a part of the ocean where -the prevailing wind is South East, and you will see all the openings -are towards the North West. - -[Illustration] - -Another sort have an island of which the foundation is coral, in the -middle of a ring like the above; and a third sort are merely the same -kind of rings round large islands, composed of other sorts of rocks and -earth. A very great number of the islands hereabouts,--perhaps most of -them, are surrounded in this manner. - -I well remember the first impressions which the sight of a coral -reef made upon me. I always like to treasure up in my mind the first -impression produced by a beautiful scene; for however wonderful the -objects may be, when you have seen them many times, you become in some -degree indifferent to them. This first impression that I am going to -describe to you, is a continual feast to me when I think upon it, and I -wish you could enjoy it with me. - -The first parts of the reef we saw were black, roundish masses, -standing up out of the water, having just the appearance of black men's -heads, and when I asked the sailors what they were, they told me they -were "negroes' heads." I was curious, as you may suppose, to know what -they could be, and I afterwards found they were masses of coral, which -were not covered by the sea, except at very high tides, and had become -blackened by the weather. - -The sun was shining brightly, and there was a smart breeze. The waves -breaking over the ragged surface of the coral threw up abundance of -spray, which the sun's rays, every now and then, painted with the most -beautiful rainbow colours. We sailed through an opening, and when we -had got into the Lagoon, the sea was perfectly smooth. The water was as -clear as crystal, and we saw the bottom, and what was going on there, -nearly as well as if we had been close to it, though the depth was very -considerable. - -[Illustration] - -No flower garden was ever more exquisitely varied, both as to form and -colour, than the scene under the water. The coral itself, standing -up in the forms of shrubs, wheat-sheaves, mushrooms, stags'-horns, -cabbages, and cauliflowers, was mostly covered with millions of the -little polypes, displaying their graceful rosettes of green, purple, -yellow, brown and white. Among these were strewn innumerable shells -from the smallest to the largest, and amongst the most conspicuous -were the gigantic clams, of which many specimens weigh hundreds of -pounds. - -Then there were seen fish darting in and out as they - - "With quick glance, - Showed to the Sun their waved coats dropt with gold," - -the variegated Zebra fish, and a hundred other species, often popping -up from deep holes and caves, of which we could not see the bottom. All -seemed life, beauty, and enjoyment, and when I had looked at it a long -time, it brought to my mind the time when God looked upon what he had -formed, and said that it was good, for you could not wish anything to -be different from what it was; the scene appeared faultless, and quite -filled up the heart with emotions of love and beauty. - -This reef was one of those which surrounded a good-sized island. The -cut will show you nearly how it appeared to be situated in regard to -the land; _a_ is the land; _b_ the coral; and _c_ the Lagoon, the -width of which was about a quarter of a mile. - -[Illustration] - -There were in it several masses of coral of a very curious shape, such -as I have since found always exist in Lagoons. They are first built up -in the form of a sugar-loaf, and when they get up somewhere between -high and low-water-mark, the polypes extend them at the sides so as -to make a sort of mushroom top, closely resembling the stones which -farmers place ricks upon, to keep them out of the way of rats and mice. -Their constructing these rocks in the sugar-loaf form, so as to make -them as firm as possible, is a proof that the labours of the polypes -are directed by a common instinct, and that each one does not do as he -likes, without regard to the rest. I suppose the reason why they spread -them out at top, is because they love best the highest habitations they -can get, that are not quite out of the water; and therefore as many -polypes as can, make their residences there. - -As the tide went down, a considerable space of the shore of the reef -was left dry, towards the Lagoon, where it slanted off gently. Upon -this there were some of the large clam shells, such as you saw a -cut of just now. They generally lay about half open, but they would -occasionally shut their shells together with a loud report, and then -spout up a stream of water three or four feet high. We boiled one of -these fish and tasted it, but found it very disagreeable. The fish -weighed about four pounds, and the shell about fifty. There were many -of a much larger size. - -The reefs towards the sea outside the Lagoons go down very suddenly, -and the soundings are generally deep, close alongside them. This is -ascribed to their being built upon the tops of submarine hills and -mountains, for it is believed that the polypes cannot work at very -great depths. - -The surface of the reef is seldom quite so high as high-water-mark; but -they sometimes go along an incredible distance without interruption, -very near that point. The inhabitants of the group of islands called -Disappointment Islands, and also of those called Duff's Islands, pay -visits to each other over a bridge of coral 600 miles in length, on a -great part of which their feet are close to the water, so that they -look when on their journey at the time of high-water, just like troops -marching on the surface of the ocean. - -The natives of some of the Polynesian islands have actually employed -some of these wonderful little masons to build quays and piers. The -way they do this, is to break off large masses of coral from any reef -that may be near, and drop them down where they want to form the pier. -In a short time the polypes will have stuck them together as firmly -as possible. In an island called Barabora, a very fine quay has been -thus constructed, where a good-sized vessel may conveniently take in or -discharge its cargo. - -There were once coral islands where England is now, for in many -counties fossil coral is found in great quantities. It is indeed most -likely that there are large tracts in every part of the world, which -owe their existence to the labours of polypes. - -This would most probably be the history of the formation of one of -these tracts, if it were in the Pacific Ocean. A volcanic eruption -would throw up a mountain from the bottom of the sea, the top of which -might be 60 or 70 feet below the surface. As soon as the eruption had -ceased, some polypes who may have left their position on a neighbouring -reef, might be brought by the tide into contact with the summit, and -would immediately begin to work. The race of polypes would multiply, -and the building would go on year after year, till the reef reached the -surface. Pieces of wood which are always drifting about in the ocean, -might be washed into the Lagoon and rest upon the shore. A little soil -might thus be formed in the course of years, and a cocoa-nut or some -other sort of seed, which would equally well bear soaking in the salt -water, might be brought from some distant land, and may take root and -produce a tree. The steady trade winds would also bring some of those -seeds which are provided with wings, such as thistles. Various sea -birds might build their nests upon the infant land, which would thus be -increased in a hundred different ways. Small animals driven out to sea -on pieces of timber or trees, torn away from their original position -by hurricanes, might land upon it; and after a succession of ages, man -would take possession, and a populous country in time be formed. - -If you are fond of poetry, you would be much pleased with a very -beautiful description of such a process as this, in James Montgomery's -poem, called the Pelican Island, which you should read. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -THE LUMINOUS APPEARANCE OF THE SEA. - - -If you were to go on a long voyage, there is nothing that you would be -much more pleased with, than the occasional bright appearance of the -sea at night. You might see this in all latitudes, but more frequently -in the tropical, than in colder climates. It occurs in a variety -of modes, and, as it seems, arises from several different causes. -Sometimes the wake of the vessel looks like a waving line of beautiful -silver light; sometimes the surface will be studded with spots of -bright light, about as large as your heads; not unfrequently you may -see large islands of light; and now and then a shoal of Albicores, -or some other fish, will pass the vessel, shaking sparks of dazzling -brightness from their fins in all directions. - -It has been supposed by some that the brightness in the track of a -vessel, and that which sparkles and flashes in the spray on the tops of -the waves, is electrical light: whether it is so or not, I cannot tell -you. - -The effect is, no doubt, sometimes produced by decayed animal and -vegetable bodies, which appear bright in the dark. I dare say you have -seen the bodies of dead fish, and the surface of rotten wood have -this appearance. The particles in which the brightness exists are so -small, that you cannot see them, for, if you touch the luminous body, -particularly if it is a stinking fish, your fingers will immediately -appear bright in the dark, and when you look at them in the light, you -will not be able to see anything on the surface of the skin. - -But the most wonderful and extensive cause of all, is the existence -of countless myriads of fish and insects, which are supplied with a -fluid substance that oozes out of their bodies, and shines with a -greenish light upon their surface. Some of them may easily be taken, -by dropping over a net where the luminous spots appear. A few of them -are small shell-fish, of the crab or lobster kind. However, the greater -part are an immense family of creatures called _Acalephæ_, or _sea -nettles_. The word _Acalepha_ is the Greek for a sting nettle, and they -are so called for a reason which I will tell you presently. - -[Illustration] - -There are a great many different forms of them, but they mostly agree -in having their bodies shaped something like an umbrella, with long -filaments hanging down from them. This is a picture of one of the -kind called Berenice. It takes its name from the resemblance of its -filaments, to the long hair of a lady. Berenice was the wife of a -warrior, who made a vow to sacrifice the hair of her head, which was -singularly beautiful, to Venus, if her husband returned from some -successful exploit in which he was engaged. He did so, and the lady -accordingly hung up her hair in the temple of Venus, and thereby gained -the honor of giving her name to a constellation called the hair of -Berenice, and the curious animal figured in the cut. - -The substance of the body is a mere mass of jelly, mostly quite -transparent, but sometimes tinged with blue or green; and when deprived -of life it becomes merely a salt liquid, and an extremely thin skin, -weighing only a few grains. - -The mouth is underneath, in amongst the filaments, which seem to be -placed where they are for the purpose of entangling small fish and -insects, to hold them till the Acalepha can swallow them. A very great -number of them are of a kind called Medusa, from the resemblance of -their filaments to the snakes, which were said to take the place of -hair upon the head of Medusa, one of the Furies. One or two sorts have -a crest which they erect as a sail, and thus move along before the -wind, on the surface of the sea, in calm weather. I will show you the -picture of one of these called the Physalia. - -[Illustration] - -The size varies from that of a pin's head, to a foot or more in -diameter, and it is said that some have been found to weigh as much as -50 pounds. Their weight is a very little more in proportion to their -bulk than that of salt water, and they keep themselves afloat on the -surface, as long as they are inclined, by moving very slowly along, -which they do by alternately contracting and expanding a very light -ring of muscle, which surrounds the umbrella. When they are tired of -their snail's gallop, or they want to descend on any other account, -they cease moving, and down they go. In this respect they are just -like a man swimming, who sinks if he ceases to strike with his limbs. - -There are some species peculiar to hot climates, where they are -generally larger, and more luminous; and some to cold. But what is -wanting in size is amply made up in number, in the Arctic regions. A -certain naturalist calculated by a fair average, how many Acalephæ -there were in two square miles of sea, and the result of his -calculation would fill up a whole line of this work with figures; you -may judge something of it, by his saying that to count the number would -have taken 80,000 persons all the time that has elapsed since the -creation of the world, counting as fast as they could! It is on these -creatures, most of them so small that they cannot be seen without a -microscope, that the vast bodies of the whales are supported, caught in -the wonderful shrimp-trap, which I described to you in a former page! - -Two or three kinds are found on your own shores, and I should not -wonder if some of you may not before now have found them lying on -the sea-shore, which the tide has left dry, and taken them up in -your hands. If so, I am sure you will not forget it, nor be in any -difficulty to know why they are called _sea nettles_. They have a -stinging power, which will make the hand smart that touches them. -This is owing to a caustic fluid with which a part of their bodies is -constantly covered. - -It is this caustic fluid which is luminous. It oozes through the skin -all round the muscular ring by which they move, and at the large -filaments. The whole body of the creature looks bright, but it is only -from the light transmitted by these parts. You may get a very fair -notion of the appearance of one of their bodies, by rubbing together -two partly transparent pebbles in the dark; the light is of nearly -the same colour, and though it is only produced just at the points of -contact of the pebbles, it illuminates their whole substance. - -As they move along they are much brighter when they contract their -bodies, than when they expand them; this is because in contracting they -press out the luminous fluid. I will tell you of some experiments and -observations, which have been made on them. - -The body of an Acalepha was squeezed over a glass of warm fresh water, -and the fluid that dropped out communicated its luminous property to -the water. The same was then done with a glass of warm salt water, but -the effect was not nearly so great. - -One was squeezed over a vessel containing nearly a quart of milk, which -it made so resplendent that one could see to read by it. The milk -retained its brightness for several hours, and when it faded, it could -be restored by stirring: even three days afterwards it was made bright -by being warmed. - -In this manner the Acalephæ communicate a slight degree of light to the -sea-water, in which they swim; but, if they are put into fresh water, -the light spreads much further. - -I have often seen them round the ship, looking like so many moons, -and emitting light enough for me to read by, some on the surface, and -others at various depths below it. Their appearance was exquisitely -beautiful when the weather was still and the night dark; but as I -thought about it, I could not help having something of a melancholy -feeling at the strange kind of half-life these creatures lead. They -might enjoy themselves, but I could not tell how, for they had no sight -nor hearing; they loved no light except their own selfish light; they -moved about in the open sea, without seeming to enjoy their freedom, -for they did not care which way they moved; they had no fixed homes or -neighbourhoods to love, like the coral insects; and above all, they did -not care for their kind, for they appear to come near each other only -by chance as the wind or the waves may drive them. - -But as they were created by God, their life was given them for some -wise end, and no doubt they have something to do in creation, and they -are capable of enjoyment, though perhaps of nothing that would be -enjoyment to us. - -[Illustration] - -[Illustration: PLATE XV. - -SEPIAS] - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -THE CUTTLE FISH. - - -Have you ever seen the bone of a cuttle fish? It is a flat, white, very -light thing, about the shape and size of a small sole, or flat fish, -which may be often picked up on the sea-shore. One side is covered -with a very hard substance, which stands out and forms a border all -round; but the other side, which has no covering, is so soft that you -can easily scrape it into powder with your nail. It is often used for -making tooth-powder, and polishing certain things, such as hard woods -and tortoise-shell. - -[Illustration] - -This comes from some of a most curious family of fishes, called by the -general name of _Cephalopods_, from the Greek words for head and feet, -because their feet are placed round their heads, and they walk along -with their heads downwards. - -There are several kinds represented in the plate, which will give you -a general notion of their form and appearance. In the structure of -their bodies they possess much more in common with the kind of animals -with which you are familiar, than the Actiniæ which make the coral, -or the Acalephæ which produce the luminous appearance on the sea; -though nothing can be more strange or unsightly than their aspect. They -have a complete system of circulation, though their blood is neither -warm nor red as ours is; their brains are enclosed in a strong case -or skull of gristle, and their organs of sense are well developed; -they have large and perfect eyes, (as you may see in the picture,) -standing out prominently, and ears on each side of the brain. Their -mouths are armed with very strong horny lips not unlike the bill of a -parrot, between which is a very rough tongue. They have no noses, but -it has been proved by experiment that they like some smells and dislike -others, and it has been supposed that the quality of substances which -affects merely the organ of smell in us, affects in like manner the -whole surface of their bodies, or at least, of their heads. They not -only resemble birds in their mouths, but also in having gizzards. - -Their great arms or legs, for they serve both purposes equally well, -of which they generally have eight, are very wonderful. They have -no bones in them to act as levers, but are merely long and muscular -masses of flesh which they move about with wonderful activity and power -in all directions, having the most complete command over them. On -their surfaces are great numbers of little suckers or cups resembling -leather, which adhere very strongly to anybody which the animal chooses -to embrace. - -You have, no doubt, often played with a round piece of thick leather -with a string through it, by wetting it and pressing it with your foot -upon a stone, so as to lift the stone up, if it be not too heavy. It is -just on the same principle that the suckers of the Cuttle Fish act. - -These curious creatures gather up some of their arms into a point, as -a sort of cut-water, as sailors would call it, and swim very rapidly, -by means of the others, having their heads behind. They crawl in all -directions with equal facility. - -[Illustration] - -Their skin changes colour in spots like that of the Chameleon. But -I shall now tell you their most remarkable peculiarities. They are -provided with a bag filled with black stuff, very like printer's ink. -This bag they can at pleasure open, and press out some of the ink; so -when any voracious fish approaches, which the Cuttle Fish thinks will -be too strong for him, he squeezes his ink-bag and colours the water -round him, and thus all of a sudden becomes enveloped in a dark cloud, -in which his enemy gropes about in vain, while he makes the best of his -way off. Is not this a most astonishing mode of defence? - -The kind which is found most frequently in our country is represented -in the plate fig. 2. Its skin is smooth and often of a dusky white, -with reddish brown spots, and its length about a foot. It is eaten by -the poor people on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea. I never tasted -it, but I do not think that either you or I should like it, from the -look of its flesh. - -There is another species of which the ink makes the colour called -sepia, which is of great value to artists. - -The largest is called Octopus, and is figured No. 1, in the plate. It -is a very powerful creature, and very ferocious in its disposition. -It is mostly found in the Indian Ocean, where it has been known to -drown men by throwing its great arms round their limbs as they were -swimming. It is also much dreaded by the natives of some of the -islands, who sail in small canoes; for an Octopus will sometimes -cast one of its arms over the side of the canoe, and will be sure to -overturn it, if the man does not instantly chop the arm off. - -Like most other very wonderful things, the accounts of the Octopus -seem to have been strangely exaggerated, though we should not be too -ready to deny what a man who seems to be sensible and honest relates, -merely because it is not like our own experience. In regard to the -largest size to which the creature has been known to attain, it is very -difficult to tell what is the truth. I will relate to you what has been -said on the subject. - -Some navigators have asserted that the largest vessels have been put in -danger by an Octopus raising its arms so as to get them entangled in -the rigging; and a great many have said the same respecting large boats. - -Pliny, the Roman Naturalist, tells a story of one in particular, which -was a sad thief. I should tell you that the Octopus is able to walk on -land when the surface is uneven, so that he can get something for his -suckers to adhere to. Well, this individual that Pliny mentions, used -to visit a house near the sea-side, and steal all the provisions within -his reach. He was seen once or twice before he could be taken; but at -last his thefts were so important, that the inhabitants of the house -watched for him all night, and caught him by the help of dogs, as he -was striding over the rocks towards the sea. It is said that he weighed -700 pounds, and that his arms were 30 feet in length, and so stout that -a man could not embrace them. - -Still more wonderful are the narrations which were commonly believed -about 150 years ago, respecting some Sepias that frequented the coast -of Norway. They were then generally called Krakens, and were supposed -to be at times nearly a quarter of a mile in length. It is related that -sailors not unfrequently mistook them for islands. - -This is alluded to by Milton in a passage of the Paradise Lost,-- - - Him haply slumbering on the Norway foam - The pilot of some small night-foundered skiff, - Deeming some island, oft, as seamen tell, - With fixed anchor on his scaly rind, - Moors by his side under the lee, and waits - The wished approach of morn. - -I dare say you will be ready to think that these things are very -unlikely, and I shall not much differ from you if you do. But no doubt -some of these creatures must be very large, and much to be dreaded, or -such things would never have been said of them. - -[Illustration: PLATE XVI. - -PAPER NAUTILUS.] - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -THE NAUTILUS. - - -But there is one of these Sepias, or Cuttle Fish, which I like very -much, though its character rests under as severe an imputation for -dishonesty and rapacity, as that of the rest. It is that one which -inhabits the beautiful white semi-transparent shell, and is called the -Paper Nautilus, or Argonaut. - -[Illustration] - -Its body is represented out of the shell in the plate, fig. 3, and you -will there see that it is not very different from those that are not -provided with shells, except in having two of its eight arms spread out -at the ends into a thin membrane or web. You shall hear presently the -pretty use which it makes of these webs. - -It has no muscular attachment to the shell, as most other shell-fish -have, but merely adheres to it by means of its suckers. On this -account, some have thought that the Sepia must be an usurper, who has -murdered the original master of the shell, and taken possession of his -house. But I do not believe there is any truth in this charge, for the -same sort of animal is always found in the same shell, and if it be -taken out, though it may be kept in salt water, it is sure to die. - -When at the bottom of the sea, he walks about with his shell uppermost, -like a snail, but of course with a much more rapid motion, and every -now and then snatches any mouthful that may take his fancy, with two of -his long arms, and conveys it to his horny beak. - -When the weather is fine, and he is disposed to enjoy it, he partly -empties his shell of water, so as to make himself lighter than the -surrounding sea, and comes up to the surface, on which he floats like a -little ship. - -I once had an excellent opportunity of watching one. The sea was -beautifully calm, and blue, and the sky perfectly clear, when I caught -sight of something white coming upwards at a little distance from the -ship. In an instant the delicate white shell popped above the surface, -twirled round, and the Sepia spouted out the water remaining in his -shell, spread out his two sails, and threw out his six remaining -feet, three on each side of the edge of his shell, which acted as -oars, and scudded away before the wind. If you had but seen the glad -little creature, it would have done your heart good. He seemed full of -freedom, and life, and joy. The dark deep caves of ocean, with their -corals and sea-weeds, and strange variety of inhabitants; the broad -surface of the sea, the fresh breeze, the lovely blue sky, and the -glorious light of the sun, were all at his command. - - "Thou the light sail boldly spreadest, - O'er the furrowed waters gliding, - Thou nor wreck nor foeman dreadest, - Thou nor help nor comfort needest, - While the sun is bright above thee, - While the bounding surges love thee, - In their deepening bosoms hiding, - Thou canst not fear - Small marinere; - For though the tides with restless motion - Bear thee to the desert ocean, - Far as the ocean stretches to the sea, - 'Tis all thy own, 'tis all thy empery. - - "Lame is Art, and her endeavour - Follows Nature's course but slowly, - Guessing, toiling, seeking, ever, - Still improving, perfect never. - Little Nautilus, thou showest - Deeper wisdom than thou knowest; - Lore, which man should study slowly; - Bold faith and cheer, - Small marinere. - Are thine within thy pearly dwelling; - Thine, a law of life compelling - Obedience, perfect, simple, glad and free, - To the Great Will that animates the sea." - - (_Hartley Coleridge._) - -You should read these exquisite lines with deep attention. There is an -allusion in the second verse to the common notion that the form of a -ship was first taken from the Nautilus; and, indeed, there is a very -distinct resemblance in a part of the shell to the keel, and in another -part to the poop. The sails and oars you will see best in the picture. - -Do you think that if the Sepia were a murderer and a thief, in -possession of what does not belong to him, according to the notion of -some naturalists which I was telling you of just now, that he could be -so happy,--so in every way at home,--in his silver boat? If you had -seen him as I did, I am sure you would agree with me in saying that he -could not be any other than the rightful owner. - -After "the small marinere" had sailed some distance, he folded up his -sails and packed them and his oars close into his shell, and went down -like a stone. - -The Paper Nautilus is mostly found in hot climates. It is never seen -on the surface unless at a long distance from land, and it is very -shy of danger, so that it is not often you can get such a good chance -of observing one as I had. I have been told by a person who was to be -trusted, that sometimes the Sepia will lay hold of a piece of drift -wood, a large leaf, or any other floating substance, and use it as a -raft, when it is not inclined to take the trouble of balancing its -shell with its feet, and spreading its sails. - -And now, my little friends, what I have told you respecting these -marvellous Sepias, reminds me of something on which I may give you a -useful caution. Many people are very fond of congratulating you on -the great wisdom and knowledge of the times in which you live, and -of making very light of what the ancients knew, or thought they knew, -especially respecting natural history. In doing this they are not -just to those who lived before us, and very often deceive themselves -in regard to the present state of our knowledge. Aristotle, the tutor -of Alexander the Great, did more in investigating the nature of the -Nautilus, and all other kinds of Cuttle fish, than any other naturalist -has done, and in his writings, (if you could read them,) you might find -nearly all the particulars I have mentioned, and a great many besides. -As to some foolish things that may be found related by him and other -old writers, which are held up for your ridicule, it is not at all -unlikely that future ages may find flaws and follies in what writings -we may leave behind us, as we now do in what our predecessors have left -us. - - -THE PEARLY NAUTILUS, &C. - -There is another kind of Nautilus, the shell of which is very strong, -and marked with brown streaks. You will see it in plate XV, fig. -4. It also differs from the Paper Nautilus, in being divided into a -succession of cells or chambers, in this manner. - -[Illustration] - -In this respect it is like the immense family of extinct shells called -Ammonites, or Cornua Ammonis; but the partitions of the chambers of the -latter are undulated, thus - -[Illustration] - -As the cells are mostly filled with various hard earthy substances, -so as to form one solid mass, they used to be called snake-stones, -because it was fancied they were petrified snakes. There are a great -number of them on the coast of Yorkshire, and the story was once -believed that the place had been infested with an immense quantity of -snakes which were changed into stone at the prayer of St. Hilda. What I -am going to tell you, relates both to the Ammonites and the Nautilus. - -If you examine the first cut, you will see small openings connecting -all the cells with each other, and the continuous passage thus formed -through the whole of the shell, is called the siphuncle. The inhabitant -of the shell is an animal of the Sepia kind, but without the webs which -serve the Paper Nautilus for sails, and with its arms not so long. It -always resides in the outermost chamber, and it is supposed that it -forms a new partition every year, so that the age of the animal may be -known by counting the number of chambers. - -When the Pearly Nautilus wishes to rise to the surface, it pumps out -the water from its shell through the siphuncle, and makes itself light. -It floats often with its shell upwards, and at other times it moves -along backwards for a considerable distance, by means of spouting out -water over the front edge of the shell. It never floats with the same -beautiful stateliness as the Argonaut. - -There is also the pretty little shell of the Nautilus Spirula, not much -larger than a shilling, plate XVI, fig. 5, which does not contain a -fish, but is merely annexed to the body of a Sepia, as is represented, -fig. 6. Its use appears to be just the same as that of the shell of the -Pearly Nautilus, to answer the purpose of a float. - -These two kinds are very rarely seen floating on the surface, though -there must be many of both of them in the ocean, from the number of -their empty shells which are found. Perhaps this arises from their not -being so buoyant as the Argonauts, and hence they more readily dip -under the surface at the approach of a vessel. - -It is now time for us to bid adieu to the sea and its wonderful -inhabitants, since I have promised to tell you of some of the wonders -of the sky, (though I remember a great many more things that I should -like to tell you of). - -[Illustration] - - - - - PART III. - - WONDERS OF THE SKY. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - -COLOUR OF THE SKY. - - -Before I tell you of some of the wonders of the sky, I should like to -tell you what the sky is: it is true you know pretty nearly as much as -I do about it, but you perhaps have not thought so much on what you -know. The sky is everything above our heads which is not connected with -the earth: thus, you may speak of a cloudy sky, or a clear sky; or of -the stars, sun, and moon, being in the sky. - -It may however be more proper to restrict the word to the blue -appearance which the atmosphere above us assumes when it is not -concealed by clouds. This appearance is caused by looking into the -air, which surrounds the globe to the height of forty or fifty miles -above its surface, and not by anything which exists above it; for -mountains, when seen from a great distance, appear of the same colour, -evidently from the extent of the air between the spectator and them. - -Climate and the season of the year, have a considerable influence on -the colour of the sky. You know what a rich full blue is over us in the -hot months of summer; and I hope you have before now enjoyed the pale -blue of a clear winter's day, when the brown and bare branches of the -trees have showed against it, and all the rivers and ponds have been -frozen as solid as a stone pavement. When I see some of you sliding and -skating on the glassy ice, at such times I am ready to wish I was a boy -again, to join in your pleasures. However, I have had my turn, and old -age has its pleasures as well as youth, only we are apt to get into a -way of looking at all past times as happier than the present, which -is both foolish and wicked. If we were to keep ourselves diligently -engaged in doing our duty, we should always be happy, whether old or -young. - -But the darkest blue sky you have ever seen in your country, is light -compared with the skies of hot climates. In them you often see a deep -rich indigo; at other times you are under a canopy of reddish orange, -almost copper colour, like that which was called in the poem I quoted -to you when describing the tropical sea, "a hot and copper sky." - -The elevation of the observer above the surface of the earth, is -likewise another cause of variation. I have never myself ascended a -mountain sufficiently high to see this, but I have been told by a -gentleman who had been at the top of Mont Blanc, that the sky there -looked nearly black. - -As you must have seen them yourselves, I need only remind you of the -glorious changes of colour by the alteration of the light at the -different times of day. I hope none of you are so lazy as not often -to have enjoyed the rosy mornings; then there is the grey twilight of -evening, and the splendours of the setting sun in the west, round which -the deep orange shades off into the most delicate yellow, which again -glides imperceptibly into pale blue towards the east. Then the moon, -when she has the heavens all to herself, and the stars, when they are -shining out boldly in her absence, each make the sky so beautiful, and -are so beautiful in themselves, that one cannot exceed the other. - -I love to look at the moon when the winds rend the clouds asunder, and -drive them tumultuously along, and you see her now and then in the -dark blue depths between. But if I were to tell you all the ordinary -appearances in the sky which I love, I should leave no room to describe -its wonders; which will not do, because I meant this book to give you -an account of things which most of you have not seen. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - -THE AURORA BOREALIS. - - -During the winter months in the Polar Regions, the sun never rises -above the horizon; and during summer it performs in appearance a little -circle round the pole of the Heavens, and never goes out of sight. -You may learn in what manner this is occasioned by the position of -those countries on the surface of the earth, from the book called "The -Wonders of the Telescope." - -The year is thus in reality divided into one long day and one long -night. While the night continues, the ground is covered with snow, and -no vegetable life is to be seen, and the animals have much to do to -support themselves on what fish they may chance to pick up on the sea -shore, by preying on each other, or else by scraping away the snow to -get at that scanty vegetation which exists underneath. The odd-looking -Esquimaux and Greenlanders would indeed be very badly off, if it -were not for the beautiful atmospheric phenomena which I am going to -describe. - -[Illustration] - -There are seldom intervals of many hours which are not illuminated by -these beautiful meteors, called Auroræ Boreales, or Northern Lights, -occurring in a never-ending variety of form, colour, and intensity. -They generally have a tendency to form an irregular arch, and one side -of them is always much better defined than the other. The more ragged -side sends out brilliant corruscations, shooting out into the sharpest -angles. - -Sir John Ross describes one which was nearly the colour of the full -moon, and of equal brightness, in the form of a well-defined arch -extending quite across the heavens, and reminded him of what he -conceived must be the effect of Saturn's ring seen by the inhabitants -of that planet from its surface. It lasted for several hours, and at -last broke up as it were into fragments of light, and disappeared. - -The distinctness of its form is much influenced by the wind, and when -the air becomes agitated, showers of rays spread out in every direction -with the quickness of lightning. Sir Edward Parry describes long bands -of light extending with immense rapidity, but always appearing to form -round a fixed point, something like a riband held in the hand and -shaken with an undulatory motion. - -Little scraps of the brightest light dart about in the heavens, called -by the sailors, "merry dancers." In stormy weather these wild little -things assume all manner of fanciful shapes; sometimes they shoot like -rockets across the firmament, then take a zigzag or waving direction, -and frequently seem to become invisible, and shine out again a little -further on. The Esquimaux say that these appearances are the spirits -of their ancestors playing at ball with the head of a Walrus! You may -perhaps laugh at this odd notion, and I will laugh with you, if you -will learn a lesson from it. You see that men in various states of -society, are always looking out for the appearance of spiritual beings, -and therefore that this disposition is a part of their constitution -which is given them by God: and although their fancies may form strange -notions at times, yet the exercise of the faculty, in some way or -other, is very important. Men had much better think that they see -spirits in the Aurora Borealis, and that they hear them in the wind, -than forget that there are such things as spirits, and that they have -spirits within them, which will live when their bodies are turned into -dust. - -But for you, my little friends, who are better instructed, there is no -occasion to think you can see or hear spirits with your bodily ears -and eyes; but I trust you will always _feel_ inwardly that there are -spirits within you and around you, and one Great Spirit above you. - -The most beautiful form of the Aurora, is called the Corona. It is -a luminous ring generally just overhead, with long distinct rays -very slender, but extremely bright, diverging from it all round. It -only lasts a few seconds, and then seems to burst like a firework, -scattering sparks in all directions. - -The stars mostly shine through the Aurora, as through a veil of thin -gauze. The darkness of the sky, with the stars shining in it above -and below, produces a most astonishing effect, which you may see very -well represented in the frontispiece, where there is depicted a small -portion of the middle of a luminous arch, very clearly defined. - -It was considered, till quite lately, that the Aurora in the Northern -regions, made a sort of rushing and rattling noise. This, however, -seems to be false, for Captain Lyons used to stand on the ice with his -ears uncovered till they were nearly frost-bitten, listening with the -utmost attention, but he could never hear the slightest sound. A very -intelligent Danish traveller says, that he has often heard the sound, -but that he is convinced of its being produced by the wind blowing upon -the ice. The reason of its being heard while the Aurora is shining, -seems to be that the Aurora often appears when it is windy, or has -something to do with a change of weather, which also occasions the -noise. - -The Aurora often appears in this country, but not with nearly so much -brilliancy or frequency, as in more northern countries. I have, -however, seen it very beautifully developed in light tints of red, -yellow, and green, but very seldom with a clear outline and determinate -form. It appears that it has been observed here much oftener than -formerly, within the last hundred years, and this applies to nearly -the whole of Europe, where it occurs. In Sweden, before the year 1716, -it was a great rarity, and about the same time the inhabitants of -Iceland were alarmed at its becoming so much more frequent than it had -previously been, supposing that it portended some great misfortunes to -be coming upon them. A similar fancy prevailed amongst ignorant persons -in this country, and I have heard that people used to imagine that the -appearance was a sign of an approaching war. - -I have very little to say to you respecting the cause of this wonderful -phenomenon. The most reasonable notion seems to be, that it is -occasioned by electric fluid playing about, and diffusing itself in -the upper regions of the atmosphere, where the air is very thin. A -similar kind of light is produced by a very pretty experiment, which -consists in sending an electric spark through a long glass vessel, from -which the air has been exhausted. When the air is more compressed, -as it is near the surface of the earth, the electric fluid does not -so spread itself abroad, but moves in more direct lines, and in -more compact masses, as you may see in lightning, or in the sparks -of an electrifying machine sent into the atmosphere under ordinary -circumstances of density. - - - - -CHAPTER III. - -PARLEY TELLS OF SOME OTHER METEORS. - - -PARHELIA OR MOCK SUNS. - -There are a great many very wonderful appearances in a polar sky, -besides the Aurora Borealis. Perhaps the most remarkable of these are -Parhelia, or "mock suns," which are often seen to shine in various -parts of the sky. As many as six of them are sometimes seen at once, -all shining with great brilliancy. They are generally brightest just -before day-break, and fade away as the true sun ascends. - -Parhelia have also been seen at different times on the continent of -Europe. At Marienberg, in Prussia, many years ago, towards evening, -one was observed which seemed attached to a small white cloud that -was situated just below the sun. It was at first of a reddish colour, -but as the sun descended towards it, it assumed the aspect of the sun -itself. - -Three at once were seen at Sudbury, in Suffolk, and two were seen in a -part of Rutlandshire. There are recorded many other appearances of this -remarkable phenomenon, but they do not seem to differ much from each -other. - -There is great uncertainty as to what occasions these mock suns. -Perhaps they are merely reflections of the image of the true sun -upon reflecting clouds, such as I shall describe to you presently. -The circumstance that seems to render this probable, is that they -sometimes become brighter as the sun approaches them, which cannot -easily be accounted for by supposing them to have any source of light -in themselves. On the contrary, their fading away at times as he rises, -may be occasioned by the clouds on which they are reflected, becoming -rarified; or the effect may be only comparative, just as the moon grows -paler, and at last disappears, as day comes on. Thus you see the two -opposite effects of the sun's approach may be equally well accounted -for, on the supposition of the Parhelia being mere reflections of the -sun, and I do not think that they could on any other. - - -IGNES FATUI. - -The name Ignis Fatuus, or False Fire, is applied to a flickering, -bluish light, which is often seen in marshy districts, and in damp -burial grounds, either on the surface of the earth or only a small -distance above it. So you see it is not strictly a wonder of the sky; -but I introduce it here because it seems to be somewhat similar to some -of the higher meteors, in the manner in which it is occasioned. - -A great many entertaining stories are told of persons having mistaken -these Ignes Fatui for real lights, and it is said that benighted -travellers have frequently been led far astray by them. They are -vulgarly called in various parts of the country, Will-o'-the-Whisp, -Jack-o'-the-Lantern, Peg with her Lantern, and in burying grounds in -Scotland, Grave Candles; and strange superstitious notions are annexed -to them. They keep constantly in motion; now rising a few feet above -the earth, now sinking to the surface; now seeming to be close to you, -disappearing in an instant, and shining out at some distance; at times -one of them dividing into two, or two seeming to join into one. - -I will presently tell you how you can try a simple experiment, -that will go a great way towards accounting for these idle -Will-o'-the-Whisps. The inflammable gas called Hydrogen, is copiously -produced by the decomposition of animal and vegetable bodies. The -substance called Phosphorus, is contained in animal bodies, and is set -at liberty in small quantities by their decomposition. When phosphorus -and hydrogen come together under certain circumstances, they mix, and -a gas called Phosphuretted Hydrogen is the result. - -There is, therefore, no difficulty in supposing that most marshy -grounds may produce this gas; and this experiment will show that it is -very likely that the Will-o'-the-Whisp is nothing more. - -Hydrogen may be obtained by pouring diluted Sulphuric acid on small -pieces of Iron or Zinc. If you mix very small pieces of Phosphorus -with very small pieces of Zinc, and put them into a glass, and pour -over them the acid, Phosphuretted Hydrogen will be sent off, and the -surface of the acid will be covered with a beautiful blue flame of -the very colour of the Ignis Fatuus. The cause of the flame is, that -the phosphuretted hydrogen is so wonderfully inflammable, that the -moment it comes into air of a common temperature, it bursts into flame. -If you try this experiment, you will see how likely it is that the -Will-o'-the-Whisp is an escape of this gas from the surface of the -earth. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - -SHOOTING STARS. - - -There are few of you who have not seen _falling_ or _shooting stars_, -as they are called. Perhaps some of you have loved to walk out when the -stars have been shining brightly in the blue sky overhead, to watch for -these shy wanderers that seem to come from no where, just to draw a -line of silver light across the heavens, and then disappear. When I was -a little child, I used to think that each appearance of this kind was -the destruction of one of the countless worlds that surround us, and -possibly the same fancy may, at some time or other, have occurred to -you. - -If you have taken delight in watching for them, you have many a -time been disappointed, because they would not show themselves more -frequently. It is, for the most part, only now and then that you can -catch sight of one; but there have been some occasions on which they -have appeared in immense numbers. - -The most astonishing multitude of them on record, appeared in the year -1833, in the night of the 13th of November, and was seen over nearly -the whole of North America, from the Gulf of Mexico to Baffin's Bay. -They came from all quarters of the Heavens, and are said at one time -to have been half as thick as the flakes in a heavy fall of snow. It -was calculated, on the most moderate grounds, that 36,000 must have -appeared every hour for seven hours successively. - -Previously, in the year 1799, also on the 13th of November, a similar -phenomenon was observed by Humboldt, the celebrated traveller, by some -Moravian Missionaries in Greenland, and by many persons in Germany. - -In the year 1822, on the same day of the same month, almost as great a -number were seen in several parts of Europe and Asia. - -In the year 1831, a French Officer states, that on the 13th of -November, while off the coast of Spain, he saw on an average more than -two a minute during several hours of the night. - -Similar observations were made in the year 1835, in some parts of -France; and from several other instances, there seems to be good reason -for believing that there are more falling stars about the middle of -November, than during any other part of the year. - -There have been a great many vague and silly notions devised to account -for these remarkable phenomena, and some that are not unreasonable, -though none perhaps quite satisfactory. It has been considered that -they were clouds of hydrogen gas, suddenly ignited by electricity, -within the range of our own atmosphere, and indeed only a very few -miles above the earth. Recent investigations have, however, rendered -it most probable that they are at very considerable elevations, often -as much as 500 miles above us. - -But supposing the circumstance of great multitudes of them appearing -just at one particular period of the year, to be a fact, a new light -is thrown upon their origin which must then be considered as decidedly -of an astronomical character. The theory which has been proposed, -is this:--that immense quantities of fragments of matter revolve in -regular orbits in our solar system in various planes, and that on -the 13th of November the earth passes near the orbit in which the -greatest number of such fragments move. Whether they are matter in a -gaseous state, or approaching it, or quite solid; or whether they are -constantly illuminated, or are only rendered luminous by their relation -to other bodies, such as reflection, or meeting with electric fluid, -and so becoming ignited, are questions which must remain unanswered. -There may be a slight evidence in favour of the notion of their -light not being permanent in themselves, from the fact of a French -naturalist having observed on the 17th of June in 1777, a very large -number of small black spots pass over the sun's disc. If these spots -were really bodies, which under other circumstances would have been -falling stars, it should not be forgotten that the earth in June is -nearly in the opposite part of its orbit to that which it passes over -in November. - -Well, after all, this is a very doubtful subject, and we may possibly -be very much out in our notions; but it is always worth while to see -which is the best of two theories, though there may be ever so little -to choose between them. We should make the best of what knowledge we -have, and never lazily satisfy ourselves by saying--"nobody can tell -which is true," which is almost as bad as being too obstinate and -dogmatical. For even if we adopt a conclusion which is wrong, we shall -be more ready to receive the truth when our knowledge may be increased, -than if we have no conclusion at all. One of the wisest men who ever -lived, said--"Truth comes more easily out of positive error than out of -confusion." - -You who have been interested with what I have told you respecting -shooting stars, should compare with it what I shall tell you in my next -chapter. - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER V. - -METEORIC STONES OR AEROLITES. - - -There were a great many accounts in very early times, of stones having -fallen from the sky. In China and some other eastern nations, they have -long had a notion that such occurrences were connected with political -events, and accordingly they have kept careful records of what they -have known to fall for centuries back. This was a vain superstition, -but it was not more vain than the incredulity with which these reports -were received by nearly all the learned of Europe, till about forty -years ago. They denied the existence of aerolites, for no other reason -than because they had not seen them. - -Some new statements attracted the attention of scientific men in -England and on the Continent, to the subject, about the beginning of -the present century, and the conclusion of their researches was, that -stones of various sizes do, in reality, not unfrequently fall from -above to the earth. - -It appears that sometimes they fall singly, and at other times in great -numbers. I will relate to you some particular instances. - -Near Benares, in the East Indies, in the month of December in the -year 1798, a very bright meteor seemed to fall to the earth, about 8 -o'clock in the evening, and a loud noise like thunder was heard, which -was followed by a shock like the fall of heavy bodies. No cloud was to -be seen in the sky. The light of the meteor was so great as to cast -very distinct shadows of the objects in its way. The ground where it -appeared to have fallen, was afterwards examined, and was found to -be strangely torn up, having a number of small holes in it about six -inches deep. At the bottom of each hole was an aerolite weighing on -the average about one pound and a half. - -In the year 1803, a similar event took place in Normandy. The meteor, -when first seen, must have been at a very great elevation, for the -inhabitants of two places more than a league distant from each other, -thought it was just over their respective towns. A hissing noise was -also heard, like that of a stone hurled by a sling. The space over -which the stones were dispersed, must have been more than eight miles -long and three wide. There were about two thousand of them collected, -of various weights, from two drachms to seventeen pounds. - -Two stones, one of which weighed 200 and the other 300 pounds, fell in -the year 1668, at Verona. In 1680, several small ones are said to have -fallen in London. In 1628, several fell near Hatford, in Berkshire, one -of which weighed twenty-four pounds. In 1795, one weighing fifty-five -pounds, fell in Yorkshire. In 1810, a large aerolite fell, which was -the means of setting fire to five villages, and killing several -persons, in India. The largest of these are, however, small compared -with some which are said, and there is good reason to believe, to have -fallen from the sky, at some time or other. One of these, now at Bahia, -in Brazil, weighs 14,000 pounds. - -This is a cut of an aerolite in the British Museum, which fell in -Buenos Ayres. It weighs 1,400 pounds. - -[Illustration] - -They are generally covered over with a thin crust, which is quite -black, and have a very rough surface. Internally, they are greyish -and of a granulated texture. By the help of a microscope, you may -distinguish roundish grains of a grey colour; others, like rusty iron; -some, angular pieces of perfectly metallic iron, which are attracted -by the magnet; and the rest is an earthy sort of cement in which the -others are embedded. Their chemical composition is very uniform, with -the exception of some that consist almost entirely of iron; of which -sort is the one represented on the preceding page. - -Their descent appears to be quite independent of the state of the -atmosphere, from whence we may infer that the clouds have nothing at -all to do with them, but that they come from much higher regions. -When they have been found soon after falling, they have always been -extremely hot, and, as I told you of one in India, they have been known -to set on fire what they have come in contact with on the surface of -the earth. - -There have been four schemes devised to account for the existence of -aerolites. It has been imagined that they were substances which had -been cast out by volcanoes to immense heights from distant parts of the -world; but this is disproved by the fact that no substance of the same -composition as aerolites, has ever been discovered amongst the known -products of volcanoes. - -The celebrated Frenchman, La Place, thought they were substances that -had been cast out by volcanoes in the moon, with such violence as to -send them within the limits of the earth's attraction. - -Some have conjectured that they are formed in the air by the -consolidation of clouds of gaseous matters exhaled from the earth; -but according to Sir H. Davy's view of the nature of flame, the light -of meteors must arise from the ignition of _solid_ bodies, so that -at least they must become solid while they are in the condition of -meteors, and long enough before they approach the earth. - -I will tell you what I think, according to the present state of our -knowledge, the likeliest explanation, though I do not say that the -reasons in favour of it are very conclusive. You will remember what I -told you respecting the probability of falling stars being fragments -of matter revolving in orbits, which the earth at certain times comes -near in its annual course round the sun. I suppose shooting stars and -aerolites to be the same things, only they are shooting stars while -they show in the sky, and aerolites after they have reached the earth. - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - -BLOODY RAIN. - - -There are on record several instances of a fall of red liquid exactly -resembling blood in appearance, which has often been accompanied by a -descent of aerolites. On the 15th of November 1755, there was a heavy -shower of this kind at Ulm, and several parts of Russia and Sweden. -There was another, March 5, 1803, in Apulia, where it seemed to fall -from a reddish black cloud. A descent of large quantities of dry dust -preceded the latter, and has on several occasions occurred by itself. - -Before this phenomenon was understood, you will easily suppose that -it was looked upon as something dreadfully portentous, and the more -so from its occurring so unfrequently. It is now known to be closely -related to the aerolites, as you shall hear. - -Some of the liquid, looking just like congealed blood, which fell at -Ulm, was examined. It was found to have a sour taste, owing, as it -was thought, to the presence of sulphuric acid. When dried, the dust -that remained, which constituted the colouring matter, was found to -be subject to magnetic attraction, and in other respects to resemble -the substance of the meteoric stones; so there can be no doubt that -the dust is nothing more than what is caused by the fracture or the -friction one against the other, of aerolites, and that the rain is made -red by the dust falling on the clouds, from which it is precipitated. - - -RED SNOW. - -Several travellers have witnessed the existence of snow of a bright red -colour, in various parts of Baffin's Bay; and at Arezzo, in Italy, in -March 1813, there was a fall of it, which lasted many hours. - -There seems some reason to suppose that in the latter instance the -redness was caused by aerolite dust; but a microscopic examination of -some of that at Baffin's Bay, has proved that its colour is owing to a -still more wonderful cause. The colouring particles are actually small -plants or fungi, which take root and grow, and bear seed upon the snow -itself! - -What do you think of this Lilliputian vegetation? One full-sized plant -is no more than 1-1600th of an inch in diameter; and to cover a single -square inch of its _cold bed_ of snow, 2,500,000 are necessary! It has -been named by its discoverer, Mr. Bauer, _Uredo Nivalis_. - - -SHOWERS OF FROGS AND FISH. - -I dare say you have heard, before now, of its raining frogs and fish. I -like that you should have correct notions on these things, so I shall -just tell you what seems to have given rise to these reports. - -If you understood what I told you respecting the water-spout, you will -see how likely it is that any small fish that may be on the spot, -should be sucked upwards along with the water, even to the very top of -the spout; now they might be kept up there as long as the whirlwind -kept up a rotatory motion in the cloud, after it had ceased to sustain -the column of water drawn up from the sea. When the whirlwind was -exhausted, the little fish would naturally fall out of the cloud, -perhaps after it had travelled far from where the water-spout occurred. - -If the water-spout had passed over fresh-water lakes or rivers, frogs -might be drawn up instead of fish, and let fall in the same manner. - -But I will relate to you another circumstance, which may have been -imputed to a descent of fish from the clouds. I told you in the first -part of this book respecting the alluvions, or torrents of mud, which -make their way after an eruption down the sides of Mount Vesuvius. -In some of the great volcanoes of South America, these alluvions have -not to be formed in the regular way, but mud of the consistence of pap -is ejected from the craters themselves in amazing quantities. This -mud is supplied by subterranean waters connected with the volcanic -channel, and it often contains myriads of little fishes of the kind -called _Pimelodes Cyclopum_: they are generally about four inches long, -and they exist in such vast numbers, that their putrifying has before -now bred a pestilence in the neighbourhood of the Volcano. There are -plenty of the same fish in the contiguous streams. What renders the -circumstance so wonderful, is their being raised up to the level of -8 or 9000 feet, and then thrown out from the crater with very little -injury. - -[Illustration: PLATE XVIII. - -SPECTRE OF THE BROCKEN] - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - -THE SPECTRE OF THE BROCKEN. - - -I am going to tell you respecting some of the appearances produced -by clouds which reflect like mirrors; and by those changes in the -atmosphere which turn aside, in an irregular manner, the rays of light, -which, as they pass from an object to the eye which is looking at it, -excite the sensation called vision. - -One of the most remarkable of these, has long been known by the name -of "The Spectre of the Brocken." The Brocken is the loftiest summit of -the Hartz Mountains, in Germany; it is said to be 3,300 feet above the -level of the sea, and to command the prospect of a tract of land which -is inhabited by more than five millions of people. - -It appears that clouds, from some cause or other, which perhaps we -shall never perfectly know, are wont at times to collect on the -neighbouring heights, and reflect a very distinct shadow of great size -of whatever object may be on the summit of the Brocken, when the sun -is rising and casts his beams horizontally. The best account of this -wonderful spectacle, is given by the Abbe Hauy, who visited it in 1797, -and I shall give you his own statement. - -"After having been here for the thirtieth time," says Mons. Hauy, -"I was at length so fortunate as to have the pleasure of seeing the -Spectre. The sun rose about four o'clock, and the atmosphere being -quite serene towards the east, his rays could pass without any -obstruction over the Heinrichshohe.[A] In the south-west, however, -towards Achtermanshohe,[B] a brisk west wind carried before it thin -transparent vapours, which were not yet condensed into thick heavy -clouds. About a quarter past four I went towards the inn, and looked -round to see whether the atmosphere would permit me to have a free -prospect to the south-west; when I observed, at a very great distance -towards Achtermanshohe, a human figure of a monstrous size. A violent -gust of wind having almost carried away my hat, I clapped my hand -to it by moving my arm towards my head, and the colossal figure did -the same. The pleasure which I felt on this discovery can hardly be -described, for I had already walked many a weary step in the hopes of -seeing this shadowy image, without being able to gratify my curiosity. -I immediately made another movement by bending my body, and the -colossal figure before me repeated it. I was desirous of doing the -same thing once more; but my colossus had vanished: I remained in the -same position, waiting to see whether it would return, and in a few -minutes it again made its appearance on the Achtermanshohe. I paid -my respects to it a second time, and it did the same to me. I then -called the landlord of the Brocken; and having both taken the same -position which I had taken alone, we looked towards the Achtermanshohe, -but saw nothing. We had not, however, stood long, when two such -colossal figures were formed over the above eminence, which repeated -our compliments by bending their bodies as we did; after which they -vanished. We retained our position, kept our eyes fixed on the same -spot, and in a little time the two figures again stood before us, and -were joined by a third," (most likely by the double reflection of one -of the spectators.) "Every movement that we made by bending our bodies, -these figures imitated; but with this difference, that the phenomenon -was sometimes weak and faint, sometimes strong and well defined." - -[Footnote B: Two others of the Hartz mountains.] - -There are some remarkable circumstances attending the Brocken, that -are doubtless in some degree connected with "The Spectre," which -was once looked upon as a supernatural apparition. When Christianity -was introduced into Germany, the priests and votaries of the old -superstition, retired to the Brocken as a refuge, and there long kept -up the dark and mysterious rites of the great Saxon idol, Cortho. It is -a very wild place, full of clefts and caverns, and with rivulets and -waterfalls on all sides of it, so that it would answer their purpose -remarkably well. After the inhabitants had taken up the profession of -Christianity, they used to celebrate on this mountain a festival on -Midsummer night, in honour of St. Walpurgis, a female saint, who had -first introduced Christianity among them. A legend then prevailed, -that the summit of the mountain was occasionally haunted by a demon, -which could have been no other than the Spectre. Everything about the -mountain was looked upon with awe and veneration. A beautiful spring -which runs down its side, is at this day called the Magic Spring; -a pretty little lily that abounds on the Mountain, is called the -Wizard's Flower; and two great square granite rocks are called the -Wizard's Chair. These names may be looked upon as monuments of the -estimation in which the mountain was once held. - -While you ought, my young friends, to feel happy and grateful in being -taught what these natural things really are, and released from all -superstitious fears or notions respecting them; you should be most -careful not to forget what you owe to a purer faith, of which the -character is to invite you to inquire into, and to know everything -within your reach. - -I shall say something to you respecting the cause of the Spectre, in a -future chapter. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -SOME OTHER INSTANCES OF AERIAL REFLECTION. - - -There has been something very like the Spectre of the Brocken, seen on -Souter Fell, a mountain about half a mile high, in Cumberland. - -One summer's evening, in the year 1743, as a farmer, named John Wren, -and his servant were sitting at the door of his cottage, they saw a man -with a dog furiously chasing some horses along a ledge on the side of -the mountain which they knew was so narrow that a horse could hardly -stand upon it. They seemed to go round one end of the mountain, and -disappeared. - -The next morning the farmer and his servant went round the track which -the horses and man had seemed to take, fully expecting to find that -they had fallen over and been killed. You may guess how surprised they -were to find no trace whatever of them, not even the mark of a hoof on -the ground. - -Well, they said nothing of what they had seen, and perhaps they almost -forgot it by nearly the same season in the following year, when the -servant, whose name was Daniel Strickett, saw one evening a whole troop -of horsemen trot along the mountain-side, near the same spot. It seems -that he had been laughed at by those to whom he had related the other -apparition, so he was rather timid, and resolved to be well assured -of the reality of this one before he mentioned it. He looked at the -figures for a considerable time, and then called another person to -witness the sight with him. Several others afterwards joined them, and -continued looking at the aerial horsemen till it was quite dark. All -these circumstances were attested before a magistrate in the year 1785: -twenty-six persons are said to have been spectators of the sight. - -[Illustration: PLATE XIX. - -DOVER CASTLE] - - -WHAT A FRIEND OF PARLEY'S SAW. - -A gentleman with whom I am acquainted, who lives in the country, told -me that he once left some labourers at the bottom of a very steep -hill, whom he had ordered to do some earth work. As he was going down, -intending to visit them again, about sun-set, he saw a part of the hill -which he was descending, and one of the labourers wheeling a barrow -upon the side of it, reflected on a cloud opposite with the greatest -distinctness. Though it was quite impossible that he could see the men -in their true position, he knew exactly what this man was about, and -what work had been done, from the reflected image. - - -DOVER CASTLE. - -Dover Castle stands upon the side of a hill, and when looked at from -the side towards Ramsgate, its four turrets may be just seen peeping -over the top of the hill. You may see how it appears in the upper -figure of plate XIX. On the 6th of August 1806, when Professor Vince, -of Cambridge, was staying near Ramsgate, he was astonished to see the -appearance of the castle as if it stood on the side of the hill next to -him, as is represented in the lower figure of the plate. It continued -so for nearly half an hour, during which he looked at it several times -with a telescope, and the image appeared quite clear and distinct. - - -WHAT HUMBOLDT SAW IN SOUTH AMERICA. - -When Humboldt was residing at Cumana, he frequently saw two small -islands which lie off the coast, suspended in the air. He once saw -some fishing boats seeming to float in the air for several minutes. In -another place he and his companion saw the figures of cows in the air -at a great height; and they were told by a person worthy of credit, -that he had seen the forms of horses suspended in like manner, but with -their legs upwards. - - -WHAT CAPTAIN SCORESBY SAW IN THE ARCTIC REGIONS. - -Captain Scoresby relates several remarkable appearances of a similar -kind, one of which I will describe to you. He saw one morning the -inverted image of a ship in the air, which he at once recognized to -be that in which his father was sailing. "It was," says he, "so well -defined, that I could distinguish by a telescope every sail, the -general rig of the ship, and its particular character; insomuch that -I confidently pronounced it to be my father's ship, 'The Fame,' which -it afterwards proved to be; though on comparing notes with my father, -I found that our relative position at the time, gave a distance from -one another of thirty miles, being about seventeen miles beyond the -horizon, and some leagues beyond the limit of direct vision." - -Many other such things have been related by travellers, but with very -little variation of circumstance. - - -APPARENT DISTANCE OF OBJECTS. - -If you have never noticed the fact, you will be surprised to observe -what a great difference appears to exist in the distance of the same -objects under different states of the atmosphere. I do not mean when it -is merely clearer than at another time, but when it is equally clear, -the same object will show much higher above the horizon, and therefore -seem to be nearer to some given spot, than at other times. We who have -been at sea, have often seen this when we have been approaching land; -but you will better understand an instance which occurred at Hastings, -on the coast of Sussex. The gentleman who related it was surprised -one day to see a crowd of people running down to the sea-side, and on -inquiry he found they were going in consequence of a report that the -coast of France had become visible to the naked eye. - -He went down to the beach, and actually saw the coast of France so -plainly as to be able to distinguish objects, and with a telescope he -even clearly saw French fishing-boats at anchor, close to the shore. -The illusion lasted for more than an hour, and occasionally grew faint -and then brightened again. The distance is fifty miles, and Hastings -would therefore be hidden from the opposite coast of France by the -convexity of the earth; so that if a straight line were drawn from one -to the other, it would pass through the sea. - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - -OF THE FATA MORGANA AND THE MIRAGE. - - -There is a very remarkable spectacle to be occasionally seen between -the coasts of Italy and Sicily, which the inhabitants call Fata -Morgana, or _Fairy Illusion_. - -The shores on each side are rich and beautiful in the extreme, and the -narrow strait being very deep, looks always blue and fresh. According -to the best accounts of the Fata Morgana, it appears only when the sun -is elevated at an angle of 45°. It consists in a reflection of the -objects on the shore more or less magnified, multiplied, distorted, and -often decorated with the hues of the rainbow on the surface of the sea -itself, and the portion of the atmosphere which is in immediate contact -with it. The inhabitants of the neighbourhood look on it as a good -omen, and whenever it appears, run down to the sea-side joyously crying -out, Morgana! Morgana! - -[Illustration: PLATE XX. - -FATA MORGANA] - -Those who have seen it, declare that nothing can be more beautiful. The -scene must look as wonderful as anything you have ever read about in -a fairy tale. Castles, palaces, temples, of the utmost magnificence, -houses, hills and valleys, woods, green pastures, all of the brightest -colours, and indeed every one of the beautiful objects on shore, -beautified tenfold. You will see in the plate the attempt of an -intelligent traveller to convey a notion of this glorious phenomenon. - - -THE MIRAGE. - -This name is given to similar illusions which are seen in various parts -of the world, and more particularly to the illusive appearance of -water, which is frequent in the sandy deserts of the East. You shall -hear what the celebrated traveller, Dr. Clarke, says of it. - -"We procured asses for our party, and, setting out for Rosetta, began -to re-cross the desert, which appeared like an ocean of sand, but -flatter and firmer as to its surface, than before. The Arabs, uttering -their harsh guttural language, ran chattering by the side of our asses; -until some of them calling out '_Raschid!_' we perceived its domes and -turrets, apparently upon the opposite side of an immense lake or sea, -that covered all the intervening space between us and the city. Not -having in my own mind, at the time, any doubt as to the certainty of -its being water, and seeing the tall minarets and buildings of Rosetta, -with all its groves of dates and sycamores, as perfectly reflected -by it as by a mirror, insomuch that even the minutest detail of the -architecture, and of the trees, might have been thence delineated, I -applied to the Arabs to be informed in what manner we were to pass the -water. Our interpreter, although a Greek, and therefore likely to have -been informed of such a phenomenon, was as fully convinced as any of -us that we were drawing near to the water's edge, and became indignant -when the Arabs maintained, that within an hour we should reach Rosetta, -by crossing the sands in the direct line we then pursued, and that -there was no water. 'What,' said he, giving way to his impatience, -'do you suppose me an idiot, to be persuaded contrary to the evidence -of my senses?' The Arabs, smiling, soon pacified him, and completely -astonished the whole party, by desiring us to look back at the desert -we had already passed, where we beheld a precisely similar appearance. -It was, in fact, _the Mirage_, a prodigy to which every one of us were -then strangers, although it afterwards became more familiar. Yet upon -no future occasion did we ever behold this extraordinary illusion -so marvellously displayed. The view of it enabled us to imagine the -horrible despondency to which travellers must sometimes be exposed, -who, in traversing the interminable desert, destitute of water, and -perishing with thirst, have sometimes this deceitful prospect before -their eyes." - -Another traveller adds a particular which is well worthy of notice. - -"The most singular quality of this vapour is its power of reflection. -When a near observer is a little elevated, as on horseback, he will see -trees and other objects reflected as from the surface of a lake. The -vapour, when seen at a distance of six or seven miles, appears to lie -upon the earth like an opaque mass; and it certainly does not rise many -feet above the ground, for I observed that, while the lower part of -the town of Abusheher was hid from the view, some of the more elevated -buildings, and the tops of a few date-trees, were distinctly visible." - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -HOW PARLEY SUPPOSES THESE APPEARANCES TO BE PRODUCED. - - -If you wish to understand the manner in which it is most probable that -these illusions are produced, you must closely attend to what I am -going to tell you. I will make my explanation as simple as I can, but I -shall be able to teach you nothing, unless you do your part by paying -attention. - -You know that vision is produced by rays of light passing from the -object seen, to the eye of the spectator. These rays have a tendency -to form straight lines, and they would be perfectly straight, if they -had only to pass through empty space; but this cannot be the case near -the surface of the earth, as they there have to go through air, and -frequently through other transparent substances. - -When these rays meet with a substance which they cannot go through, and -which is therefore called opaque, such as a man or a house, they are -turned back or _reflected_, and strike the eye of the person who may be -looking in that direction, so as to cause vision. - -But when they meet with a body which they can pass through, called -therefore transparent, such as water or glass, they are turned aside -out of their original course or _refracted_; and this refraction takes -place in different degrees, according to the density of the substance. - -Thus, in looking at objects through air, you do not see anything -exactly in its real position; but in looking at them through water, -the variation between the reality and the appearance is still greater, -because the density of water being greater than that of air, it will -refract more. To prove this you need only put a stick obliquely into -water, and it will look as if it were broken or bent at the surface of -the water. - -[Illustration] - -The true position of the stick is marked by A B, and the apparent -position, by A C. - -We see the rising sun some minutes before he has risen above our -horizon, and the setting sun after he has sunk below it, because his -rays are refracted by our atmosphere. - -[Illustration] - -If the sun be at A, he will appear to a spectator on the surface of the -earth at C, as if he were at B, because the rays will be refracted at -D, which represents the limit of the atmosphere, towards C. - -Perhaps you knew all this before. Well, the knowledge of these laws -will very nearly enable you to understand the wonders of which I have -told you. I will try to explain to you the manner in which it seems -that the appearances are produced by the operation of the laws. - -If a ray pass through a body that refracts it from its original course, -it will go on when it has got through, in a line parallel with its -first direction. - -Thus, let A B be a thick piece of glass, and C D, a ray of light -passing through it, which would be refracted from _c_ to _d_; C _c_ -would be exactly parallel to _d_ D, and the point C would be seen from -D as if it were at E. - -[Illustration] - -If you think a little upon this, you will see that nothing is necessary -to account for objects appearing nearer to a given point at one time -than another, or objects upon the earth appearing high up in the air, -except different degrees of refraction. Thus in the instance of the -coast of France seeming to approach Hastings, it is evident that the -effect would be produced by an extraordinary degree of refraction in a -stratum of air over the sea, through which the rays of light producing -vision must come. - -[Illustration] - -The explanation will be the same as that of the diagram of the rising -sun in a former page; if the ray from A took the direction D, as under -ordinary circumstances it would do, it is evident that a spectator at -C would see nothing. But instead of this, the ray was refracted near -the middle to the point C, which represents the town of Hastings, and -therefore the object A appeared as if it had been placed at B. You -shall now hear what causes are likely to alter the refracting power of -the air at times. - -When air, water, or any other substance, is made hot, it becomes -rarified, and its refracting power is thereby diminished. Have you ever -watched, while you have been on one side of a stove, or of any heated -body, the appearance of things on the other side through the air above -it? If so, you must have seen how strangely they seem to tremble. Now -this is caused by a stream of irregularly heated air rising from the -stove, and enabling you every instant to see the things beyond it more -nearly in their true position than you can through air of the ordinary -temperature. - -If you look through a magnifying glass at distant objects, they will -appear upside down. You may learn why this takes place from books on -optics. The same effect is produced by rays passing through a medium -which becomes gradually denser, instead of suddenly passing from one -state to another. Thus, if you take a square glass bottle and put some -clear syrup into it, and then carefully pour water on the top of that, -anything, such as a written or printed line, seen through the space -where the liquids are mixing, will appear inverted. - -Again, if you take a tin tube full of water, stopped with a piece of -plain glass at each end, warm the middle of the tube, and then look at -one end, you will see an object at the other end, if held at a proper -distance, magnified, and distant objects turned upside down, just as -they would be by a convex lens. If, on the contrary, you cool the -middle of the tube, by applying ice to it, the same ensues as by using -a concave lens. If a space of cold air be between two spaces of hot -air, or the contrary, a space of hot air be between two spaces of cold -air, the effects would be the same, only they could not be produced in -so small a compass as they could with water. The space where the two -different temperatures were gradually mixing, would influence the rays -of light in the same manner as a lens on a very large scale. - -Now portions of air are often made of different temperature by the -sun's rays, by evaporation, as from the surface of the sea, or -of lakes, or from marshy districts, and by winds operating under -particular local circumstances. I do not want to lengthen out this dry -story, but if you have read attentively what I have said, you will see -that various positions of masses of air heated to different degrees, -is all that is necessary to account for the instances which I have -mentioned, in which objects have appeared inverted and out of their -true positions; such as Dover Castle, Captain Scoresby's father's ship, -the French coast opposite Hastings, and the islands, and horses with -their legs upwards, described by Humboldt. - -The apparitions of Souter Fell may be accounted for in like manner. -The latter one was seen at a time of civil commotion, when there were -private troops of horse exercised in all parts of the country, and so -the fact of armed horsemen being in the neighbourhood, is rendered -very probable. We have only to suppose the image of such a troop to be -brought to the side of Souter Fell, perhaps from the opposite side of -the mountain, by a complicated refraction, like that which appeared to -move Dover Castle out of its place. - - * * * * * - -But the Spectre of the Brocken, the Fata Morgana, and the image which -my friend saw of the side of the hill on which he was, require another -sort of explanation, because the object and the image are seen both at -once; the latter could therefore have been no other than the reflection -of the first. - -It seems likely that some vapours are capable of receiving shadows. -When I have been bathing in a river with a muddy bottom, I have often -seen my shadow on the cloud of muddy particles which I have disturbed -from the bottom, in a manner something similar to that in which I -should think this may occasionally take place. - -There is, however, another theory of it. When rays pass from a thin -medium into a denser medium, the whole do not go through, but they are -_strained_, as it were, and a part are kept back and reflected. It is -thus that you see a reflection on a transparent pane of glass. - -If you breathe very lightly upon it, the reflection will be still more -distinct, and the resemblance to the phenomenon we are describing -probably greater. There are then two causes of reflection, the change -of refracting power, and the presence of the watery particles. - -Something of this kind perhaps occurs on the top of the Brocken. A rush -of cold air may set up from deep ravines, with water and marshy land at -the bottom, on the West side, while the rising sun is genially warming -the air on the east side of the mountains. Mind, I do not say that it -is so, but it does not seem unlikely that two currents, one of cold air -and the other of hot, thus ascend close to each other; and according to -what I have told you, there would be a reflecting power in the plane -of contact, which might be increased by the watery particles carried -upwards. - -A kind of aerial screen would thus be formed, which might catch -the shadow of a person on the opposite summit, cast upon it by the -horizontal rays of the morning sun. Thus you may account for the image, -and its being so greatly magnified, requires no further explanation -than I have given above; as it only needs the supposition of a mass -of heated air, with two colder ones on each side, being between the -persons and the reflecting substance. - -The doubling of one of the figures was possibly occasioned by a -reflecting surface having been formed on a different plane from the -first, which might very easily occur. - - - - -CONCLUSION. - -OF SOME OTHER WONDERS, AND HOW WE OUGHT TO USE OUR KNOWLEDGE OF THE -WONDERS OF NATURE. - - -I. I have now given you, my little friends an account of a few of -the wonders of the wonderful world we live in, and I hope they have -entertained you. I should like to have spoken to you of a great many -other things, but it would make my book too large. - -Some of you, I dare say, are fond of some branch or other of natural -history, and perhaps you may be in the habit of collecting shells, -plants, insects, or fossils. Well, I hope a great many of you do so, -for it is a very delightful employment, when you are not learning your -regular lessons. When I was a school-boy, I loved to dig fossils out -of the earth, and many a sunny day have I spent with my hammer and -chisel under the cliffs by the sea-side, or in a stone-quarry. Many -times I laboured long without success, but at last I scraped together -a very pretty collection, and always managed to enjoy myself on these -fossil-hunting days, whether I was successful or not. - -But what I want particularly to say to you before we part is, that I -hope none of you will rest satisfied with merely listening to what -others tell you, with making an orderly collection of specimens, or -recollecting merely the outsides of things. Though all these are very -good when in their proper places, they are not enough. You should -compare together different facts, and often turn them over in your -minds, always keeping in view that there is something to be learned -from them more interesting and more important than any knowledge, -however correct, respecting the shapes of crystals, shells, or plants, -or the habits of animals. - -If you are diligent in thinking on what you know, you will see that -nothing stands alone in nature; every single thing is connected with -other things, so as to make up one great whole. It is true that you -will sometimes see what seems to be an exception to this; you will see -instances of conflict and disorder, and, as it seems, things destroyed -without a reason; but you will also very often find, as you come to -know more, that what seemed at first an exception was not such in -reality, and that it was what tends as much to the order and beauty of -the whole, as any of the particular things you admired at first. - -II. The ancients supposed that those parts of the world which were -in the torrid zone, and those towards the North Pole, could not -be inhabited by man; and we find from their writings, that it was -something of a puzzle to know of what use they could be. They did not, -however, know much about the extent of them, for even the shape of the -earth was then unknown,--some contending that it was in the form of a -cylinder, some that it was pear-shaped, and others that it was round -and flat like a trencher. A very few made a shrewd guess at its true -figure. No one was quite certain on the subject, till navigators had -sailed round it, so as to reach, by continually going forward, the same -spot as they started from. - -What men have learned within the last four centuries, has taught us -that only a small portion of the surface of the earth is uninhabitable. -Man, by the wonderful constitution of his nature, is enabled to bear -the extremes of heat and cold better than any of the animals that -are sent for his use, each of which is adapted for the particular -climate in which it may be placed. Under the most extreme variations -of the temperature of the atmosphere, the heat of our bodies, when we -are in health, is never increased or diminished more than a very few -degrees; so that a thermometer, with the bulb put into the mouth of an -Esquimaux, in a climate much below freezing, will be only three or four -degrees below what it will be in the mouth of an inhabitant of the East -Indies, where the temperature often exceeds 100 degrees. - -The dog is almost the only animal that is prepared to accompany man in -all climates. The form and habits of this faithful creature vary most -surprisingly, according to the circumstances in which he is placed; -but he is everywhere the loving friend and faithful associate of man, -and ready to defend him and to share his toil, in the hot and parched -deserts of the East, or the icy regions of the North. - -There are a few animals that undergo remarkable changes, to enable them -to bear the vicissitudes of the climate in which they may be placed. -The hares and the foxes of the Northern regions become covered with -white hair in winter. Now, it is proved, that a body hotter than the -surrounding atmosphere which has a white covering, cools much more -slowly than one covered with a dark colour: hence, the heat generated -inwardly is preserved and economized by the winter coats of these -animals, to the great benefit of their health and comfort. - -III. Some kinds of birds that love warm climates, are taught to -assemble together at a certain season near the end of summer, almost -to a day, and start off on a pilgrimage to distant lands, where nature -is still blooming. There are these birds which all live nearly the same -sort of life,--the swift, the swallow, and the house marten, which -all bear a strong resemblance to each other. They all come to us from -the south in spring, and take their departure before the next winter. -The swifts form themselves into companies, and take their leave of -us before the middle of August; the swallows do the same about the -middle of October, and the martens at the end of the same month. Thus -these happy creatures manage to live all their life long in summer and -sunshine. - -[Illustration] - -They are furnished with astonishing capabilities for performing these -very long journeys. You are acquainted with their slender forms, so -exactly adapted for cutting through the air, and their long, beautiful -wings. Each of these wings is moved by a muscle of prodigious power, -situated on each side of the breast-bone. Possibly you may have -noticed in larks and other birds, that are in the habit of flying long -distances, which are eaten, what a large proportion of their flesh is -in these two muscles; in the swallow, it greatly exceeds the weight of -the flesh of all the other parts of the body. You will hardly believe -it when I tell you, that the swift is able to fly at the rate of more -than a hundred miles in an hour. The little bird that perched upon -your chimney this morning, may perch to-morrow night upon one of the -pyramids of Egypt, and next week may be at the Cape of Good Hope. You -think a great deal of travelling twenty miles an hour on a railway, but -you see that is slow compared with the travelling of the swallows. - -Instead of thus following the summer about over the surface of the -earth, some creatures, that love warmth, make the best of it where -they are. Some birds get into holes and other sheltered places, put -their heads under their wings, and so sleep away the winter months. The -pretty little black-eyed dormouse makes up a snug nest, and does the -same, and so do some other of our common animals. During this inactive -period, all the functions which are necessary to support life become -fitted to a state of repose; the circulation gets slower, and the -supply of inward heat sinks to the lowest temperature which life will -bear. - -I dare say you have often found some sorts of snail-shells with the -snail inside, and the mouth sealed up firmly, and have taken them for -dead: this is not the case. The covering is only put over for the -winter to keep out the cold, and the creature lives till spring without -food or motion. How it must enjoy the first bright days of spring, -when it opens its eyes after its long nap, reaching out its horns, and -dragging its shell over the green grass. - -[Illustration] - -IV. Then, in the distribution of different animals, there is not less -to engage our attention. The rein-deer is the support and comfort of -the Laplanders. It lives constantly on the scantiest, and apparently -least nourishing diet, and when brought into warmer climates it soon -languishes and dies. The camel only flourishes where there are large -sandy deserts, with precarious supplies both of water and solid food; -and to fit him for his peculiar line of usefulness, he has a receptacle -to contain a stock of water, which he can at pleasure turn into his -stomach, and can go eight or nine days without a fresh supply; he eats -any kind of vegetables, however dry they may be; and a pound a day is -sufficient to support him for weeks together; though he is very much -larger than any of the animals which inhabit your country. It is usual -for camels to go the whole distance from Cairo to Suez, in Egypt, -without tasting a morsel, and this remarkable faculty has been supposed -to arise from the hump upon their backs. When the animal is well -fed, this hump, which is of a fatty substance, fills out and becomes -solid; but when his food is scanty, it wastes away, and its substance -appears to go to the nourishment of the more vital parts of his frame. -His large feet rest upon the sand without sinking in, and at the rate -of about two miles an hour, he will travel thirty miles a day over a -parched desert, bearing a burden of seven or eight hundred weight. He -is called by the Arabs the Ship of the Desert. - -[Illustration] - -V. You may see that there is, in every variety of circumstance, -something that enjoys itself, and has a place to fill up and a part to -act amongst the creatures which God has made. But this is not all: the -existence of the cold of the Poles, and of the heat of the Tropics, is -necessary to the well-being of the whole. - -The free air that surrounds the globe, which we breathe, and through -which we see, and hear, and smell, and move, is the same in composition -in every part of the world. It contains just the same proportions of -the two gases, oxygen and nitrogen, in the coldest and the hottest -climates, in the deepest valleys and on the tallest mountains. Now, -this air, considered on a large scale, is always blowing from the Poles -towards the Equator. The more direct rays of the sun heat that portion -of the earth's surface which lies in the Torrid Zone, and therefore -the air above it is perpetually ascending to the upper regions of the -atmosphere, to make room for that which presses upon it from the Poles, -because it is cooler and heavier. - -It is this process, united with the motion of the earth on its axis, -which causes the Trade Winds and Monsoons. - -Now, do you not see how necessary the cold Poles are to keep the rest -of the world from becoming too hot, by supplying constant currents of -fresh air setting in upon the hotter regions from both sides? Then the -air, which ascends from the Equator, becomes cool, and travels down -again to join the air from the Poles; and so a healthful circulation is -kept up, which is necessary for all climates. - -VI. It is very interesting to trace the dependance of the various -tribes of vegetables and animals on each other, and to observe how one -flourishes through the dissolution of another; and still more so to -notice the gradual development of the same parts in the kinds, as they -ascend one above another. You may see an instance of this in three of -the animals that I described to you, which were different enough in -other respects, but agreed in being without a bony skeleton, and in -having long organs round their mouths to catch their food with. - -In the Acalephæ, or sea-nettles, these organs were merely filaments -without sensation, of which the use seemed to be, to entangle little -creatures in, which chance might bring in their way. The animals -themselves would seem, at first sight, to be very ill able to destroy -small crabs and other shell-fish. You would suppose that the struggles -they would make with their hard pointed legs, would tear the tender -bodies of the Acalephæ; but the deficiency is supplied by the caustic -luminous fluid which paralyzes the victim, and disables it for violent -struggles while it is detained by the filaments, before the Acalepha -attempts to swallow it. - -In the Actiniæ, you will find the loose disorderly filaments changed -into feelers, with wonderfully acute sensation, regularly disposed -in a star. When a substance touches the feelers they close in with -considerable power, but seem to act more like a mechanical trap,--as -the leaves of certain plants catch flies and other insects,--than in -direct dependance on the will of the animal. However, the Actinia has -the sense of feeling, and has a perception of light and of odours, -though without eyes or nose. Having greater muscular strength and -more compactures of film, he does not need the destructive fluid with -which the Acalepha is furnished. Thus, one sort of power is made to -compensate for the loss of another. - -The Sepia also catches his food by means of fleshy organs placed round -his mouth; but in him you find them possessed of amazing power, moving -in strict subjection to his will; never loosely floating about as in -the others. Then he tastes, sees, and hears, by means of a tongue, -eyes, and ears, distinctly formed. - -A similar gradation is observed in the development of the various parts -composing the hand and arm in animals with perfect skeletons, in which -the bones act as levers. There is a very interesting book[C] written -on this subject, which you would do well to read; and you will see -in it that all sorts of birds, quadrupeds, and even fishes, have, in -their fore feet, wings, and fore fins, elements resembling those of -the human hand and arm. Often, in comparing only two animals, you might -fail to trace the slightest resemblance; but when one or two or more of -other kinds are placed between them, you find a sort of ladder which, -in an evident manner, unites the lowest with the highest tribes. - -[Footnote C: Sir Charles Bell's Treatise on the Hand.] - -At distant periods of the earth's history, you may see the same sort of -organs, and the same dependance of the creatures one on another. The -fierce Icthyosaurus, and the sly, long-necked Plesiosaurus, had eyes, -ears, tongues, and other parts, the same as our contemporaries; and -they ate and digested their food, and moved from place to place, and -preyed on each other in no other manner. - -If our acquaintance with nature were much greater than it is, we should -doubtless be able to bring proofs that there is no sort of stones, of -vegetables, or of animals, nor any process or movement of the elements, -in which we have not an interest. There is no fact that is not in -some way or other connected with the whole, so as to influence its -well-being. - -VII. Not only are the creatures which inhabit the earth united together -by bonds of similarity of structure and appetite, of common wants and -enjoyments, and of mutual support; but we are also united with the -boundless system of worlds which the night unveils to our view. The -principle of gravitation, and the beneficent rays of the sun operating -on the planets and their moons, throw over us a plain and obvious tie -of brotherhood with the stars that we may see night after night making -their way amongst the constellations, as they move in their orbits, -distinguished by their steady light from the twinkling multitude of -fixed stars. The law that unites us to them is the same as causes a -drop of rain to descend, or a weary fly to settle on the earth. - -It is not improbable, that the aerolites (if the theory which I hinted -at in a former chapter be true) may be fragments of original matter, -which have never been appropriated by any globe, and now sometimes -pitch on one planet, and sometimes on another. If this be the case, we -should be warranted in concluding that the matter of our solar system -is everywhere the same, chemically considered, and is, therefore, -governed by the same chemical laws; for the aerolites contain no -substance which is not to be found far below the surface of the earth. - -Some ignorant persons, in all ages of the world, have fancied that the -relative positions of the stars to each other, at the moment of the -birth of an individual, must have an influence upon his character and -the future circumstances of his life. Thus arose what was called the -_science_ of astrology, and the practice of _casting nativities_; and -in vulgar conversation it is not unfrequent for people, who do not -know the origin of the expression, to "thank their stars," or to talk -of their "unlucky stars," which arose from the prevalence of such a -belief. This, I need hardly tell you, is all nonsense, from beginning -to end; but you may now know that there is, in reality, quite as -wonderful a connection, and as direct a one, between yourselves and the -stars, as this which was fancied to exist. - -VIII. But who can tell how wide the relationship of our earth and -everything upon it is extended, through the agency of those wonderful -principles Light, Heat, and Electricity? It may seem to you impossible, -when I tell you that there is not a blade of grass or a flower on -this earth, which may not, in its little degree, affect the climate -of a star far beyond the limits of our solar system; but if you will -consider the way in which the falling of dews is regulated, you will -see that there are grounds for such a notion. - -I must first tell you that it is a property of Heat, like Light, to -_radiate_ or expand itself in all directions, without limit; so that a -heated body is always sending out its heat. - -Now, this radiation is influenced by the surfaces of bodies: Heat will -radiate more from a black rough surface than from a smooth white one, -and a black body will therefore much sooner get cool than a white one, -as I had occasion to tell you just now. The heat radiates rapidly from -the leaves of vegetables, though from different kinds of plants in very -different degrees, while from stones and dry wood it radiates very -slowly. - -Heat is also _reflected_, or turned back, by meeting with certain -objects; and in this respect, too, it resembles light. You have -possibly seen experiments showing this, made with polished metal -mirrors. - -At night time, when the sun's rays are not present, as the heat -radiates quickly from the plants on the ground, each plant becomes -thereby cooler than the earth and stones which surround it. This causes -the watery particles which the air contains, to condense on its leaves -and flowers, in the same manner as you see the moisture in the air of -a crowded room, settle on the outside of a glass of cold water; and, -what is most wonderful, the surface of each plant is so constructed as -to allow the escape of just so much heat, and to receive just so much -dew in return, as its peculiar nature requires. You may see, if you -look, that some plants always have more dew on them than others. - -On a cloudy night, when dews are not so much required, a great part of -the heat thus radiated is sent back, being reflected by the clouds. -Hence the dew falls less heavily at such a time than on a clear -starlight night, when every blade of grass and every little flower -sends out its ray of heat to an indefinite extent, and may possibly -meet another ray from the Dog-stars or one of the Pleiades! - -This is very wonderful; but if you think, you will perceive that it -is not more wonderful than that a ray of light should travel so far. -Every particle of the surface of these stars does its part in emitting -light, and by that the light of our nights is increased; and if Light -is affected by such remote influences, why should not Climate be so -affected? - -IX. As everything has a place to fill up amongst the creatures by which -it becomes connected with the universal system, we find innumerable -instances of things being most wonderfully provided with powers of -retaining the position for which they were created, when circumstances -may oppose it. The tendency which every animal has to preserve its -own life, supplies abundant illustration. It is this which causes the -Arctic animals to change their colour to white in winter, and the -swallows to migrate to warmer regions. But there is something selfish -in this, as the provision is merely to save the animal's own life. -Much more beautiful is it to observe the operation of the affections -of parent animals towards their offspring, by which the young, when -they are incapable of taking care of themselves, are kept alive and -preserved from injury often at the sacrifice of the enjoyment, and -even of the life of their parent. You will remember what I told you -respecting the love of the old whales towards the _suckers_. Nothing -parts with its own life willingly, but in a great many animals it may -be seen that there is a greater regard to the preservation of their -race than of their own individual lives. - -[Illustration] - -X. These tendencies may be seen in vegetables as well as in animals. -The young buds of various plants, of the common poppy for example, hang -down their heads, so that the bottom of the _calyx_, as it is called by -botanists, is placed upwards, and forms a sort of thatch or roof. When -the flower spreads out its bright broad leaves, although its weight -is increased, yet it then boldly lifts up its head to the sun, and -the neck of the stalk which seemed unable to bear up the bud, is well -able to sustain the full flower. Now if it were otherwise, and if the -bud held the same position as the flower, the rain would run into the -calyx and would lie there, so as to cause the _petals_ or leaves of the -future flower to become rotten. - -In this Kingdom of Nature, the unwillingness to part with life is even -more wonderfully exhibited than in animals. - -Seeds have been known to retain their principle of life for centuries, -and long after they have seemed perfectly dead and dry, when placed -in proper circumstances, they have sent out shoots and borne flowers -and fruit. Mr. White relates, that when some old beech trees were -removed from a spot in the neighbourhood of Selborne, where they must -have stood for ages, some strawberry plants sprung up, of which the -seeds must have lain dormant under the roots of the beeches. When the -Spaniards took possession of Peru, many of the race of Incas, the -rulers of that country, fled to the deserts and took with them what -provisions they could carry. There are now, sometimes, found in these -deserts, ancient vessels with very narrow mouths, containing at the -bottom a few grains of _maize_ or Indian corn, the remains of the stock -of those poor exiles. I have got one of the vessels; and the maize -which came out of it was sown, and took root and bore seed, though it -must have been bottled up for considerably more than three centuries. - -But now I am going to tell you something still more surprising than -this. The Ancient Egyptians, from some notion connected with their -religion, used at times to place in the hands and under the soles of -the feet of the bodies they embalmed, the roots of a kind of lily. The -roots are of a bulbous sort, not much unlike an onion, and they have -often been found on those mummies which have been uncovered. One or two -of them have been set to vegetate, and have actually borne flowers and -seed, after having slumbered in a mummy coffin for considerably more -than 2000 years! - -XI. You know that some seeds have wings or sails, by means of which -they are transported by the winds over land and sea for very many -miles. The thistle-down everybody is acquainted with. There is an -eastern annual plant whose seeds are provided with wings, which, in -a most curious manner, it only uses when it needs them, as you shall -hear. It grows in the little pools that occur here and there in the -deserts of Arabia, which, as you may suppose, in a hot climate and a -sandy soil, are very apt to dry up at some seasons of the year. The -seeds grow on the stalk enclosed in a roll of flaxen fibres, and when -they are ripe they fall off, and if the water continues till the next -year, they spring up close by where their parent plant lived. But -should the pool dry up, the flaxen fibres become dry and spread out -into wings, the wind takes hold of them, and away flies the seed till -it reaches a more favoured spot. When it is lucky enough to get to the -water, the pod speedily bursts open, and the seeds take root at the -bottom. You see how, by a simple mechanical contrivance, this plant is -enabled to do the same for the preservation of its species, as I told -you the Actinia did by a very simple exercise of instinct, for the -preservation of itself. - -XII. Because you wonder at the works of creation, you feel a desire to -search into them. You will find out many things, and you may learn to -explain a great many things, the reasons of which you are ignorant of -at present. Still, your wonder will not be satisfied; on the contrary, -the further you go, the more it will be excited. You will have to -go wondering on, but if you proceed in the right disposition, every -addition to your knowledge will increase your admiration and love; -for everything was made by the loving and wise God, and therefore -the whole must necessarily be beautiful and harmonious, and there is -nothing which has not its place to fill, and its part to act. May you, -my little friends, ever keep in mind that you are not left out of this -Divine Plan; and that there is a place to be filled, and duties to -be performed, by each one of you, which are not left to a mechanical -contrivance nor to animal instinct; but must be found out and fulfilled -by a never dying Spirit, which must be conscious of what it is about, -and is responsible to God for every action. - - -J. GREEN AND CO., PRINTERS, BARTLETT'S BUILDINGS. - - -WORKS RECENTLY PUBLISHED BY - -DARTON AND CLARK, - -HOLBORN HILL. - - -BIRDS AND FLOWERS; - -AND OTHER COUNTRY THINGS. - -BY MARY HOWITT. - -BEAUTIFULLY ILLUSTRATED IN A NEW STYLE. - -_Handsomely Bound in Saxony, Gilt Edges. Royal 18mo. Price 6s._ - -"This is a charming addition to the gift books of the season. 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Her name brings a magic with it, let us see it -when and where we will; it is one crowded with pleasant associations, -telling of wisdom learned by the wayside and under the hedge-rows -breathing perfume,--_not_ the perfume of balls and routs, but of -violets and wild-flowers,--leading the mind to pure and pleasant -thoughtfulness."--_New Monthly Magazine._ - - -THE LITTLE CONCHOLOGIST; - -A GUIDE TO THE CLASSIFICATION OF SHELLS: - -WITH A COPIOUS INDEX OF THEIR VULGAR NAMES: - -BY THE REV. T. WILSON. - -SECOND EDITION. - -_Square 36mo. Gilt Edges, Coloured Frontispiece, and Copper-Plates. -Price 1s._ - -"A nice sea-side book, in a pretty exterior."--_Tait's Magazine._ - -"Ably drawn up, and beautifully printed."--_Family Magazine._ - -"A little gem."--_Monthly Review._ - -[Illustration] - -Just Published, - -THE LITTLE MINERALOGIST; - -OR, FIRST BOOK OF MINERALOGY. - -BY THE REV. T. WILSON. - -_With Coloured Plates, a Companion to the above. 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Price 1s. 6d._ - -THE LITTLE BOOK OF BOTANY; - -OR, - -FAMILIAR EXPOSITION OF BOTANICAL SCIENCE; - -SIMPLIFIED AND WRITTEN EXPRESSLY FOR - -Young Botanists. - -BY DANIEL COOPER, A.L.S. - -CURATOR TO THE BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF LONG AND AUTHOR OF "BOTANICAL -RAMBLES WITHIN THIRTY MILES OF LONDON." - - -_A New Illustration of the Geography of Holy Scripture, upon an -original plan, expressly adapted for SCHOOLS and FAMILY INSTRUCTION._ - - - -Just Published, - -PALESTINE, AND PART OF EGYPT, - -WITH THE COUNTRIES ADJACENT; - -Showing the Route of the Israelites through the Wilderness, and the -Division of Canaan among the Tribes; and the Holy Land in the Time of -our Saviour; all the Countries visited by the Apostles, and the great -Empires of the East; being a complete Geographical Illustration of the -Sacred Scriptures. - - -BY WILLIAM MARTIN, - -EDITOR OF THE "EDUCATIONAL MAGAZINE." - -_Size, 39 by 26 inches, price 10s. 6d.--in a case, 14s. Canvas and -Roller, Varnished, 21s._ - - [***] _The physical peculiarities of the countries represented, and - the sites of particular events, with references to the passages of - Scripture in which they are recorded, are laid down in this Map with - peculiar accuracy and clearness._ - - -DARTON AND CLARK, HOLBORN HILL. - - - * * * * * - - -Transcriber Note - - -Some of the quoted passages have unusual spelling for some words. These -were left as is; but other minor typos may have been corrected. - -The Table of Contents and page 69 list name "Skapta-Jokul" and -"Skaptar Jokul" respectively. A web search shows that the more common -spelling was "Skapta Jokul" and both were changed to that. Some page -references in the Table of Contents were corrected. A reference to -"Plate XVI, fig. 4" on page 246 has been corrected to "Plate XV, fig. -4". Illustrations were moved so as to prevent splitting paragraphs. -All materials were obtained from The Internet Archive and any files -produced are placed in the Public Domain. - - - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Peter Parley's Wonders of the earth, -sea, and sky, by Samuel G. 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