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The Infernal Regions

The Infernal Regions image
Parent Issue
Day
29
Month
August
Year
1889
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

(CONTINÜED FROM LAST WEEK.) Zigzagging back and forth up, up, up and the top is yet above us. We can see the smoke pouring out and hear the bellowing within. We cross a plain of yellow sulphur, the air is stifling and we are i'oroed tohurry. Climbing almost 8t-aight up toward the top for six hundred feet or more we reaeh the edge of the present crate ! The ground is so hot one can stand still but a moment. Passing around a little to the right and keeping close to our guide we were presented to the whole panorama of inferno at once. Peering OTer the edge of the crate we could see the white sulphur smoke rolling up like clouds from the bottomless pit just ia front of us. A. moment of comptrative silence and then a long, loud roll of thunder, then a shower oí einders and molten stone thrown into the air far above our heads. We had to watch closely that none of these einders struck us. A period of silence for about a quarter of a minute and then another belching forth of molten matter. It now got too hot for us and we were obliged to desoend a short way down, but before doing so I gave the guide two raw eggs which I had carefully oarried all the way f rom Pompeii. The guide took them scooped out a hole in the lava where we stood and laid the eggs in it. We waited about a minute, I ghould say, and he pronounced them " done ", took them on a paper to a cool spot and eüjoyed the Vesuviui roaster's work very much. The eggs were done to a turn and with salt were much relished after eohard a climb. Resting on the softest einder we found we took in the view which lay spread out at our very feet. There was the sea, the bay and five cities dotting the coast. Pompeii lay nestled among the vineyards, the ancient city, but half excavated, looked like a huge brick kiln before the bricks are bumed. From our point of view eight cities could be seen in the valley below and far beyond Btretched the Appenines, receding from the shore to join the main chain on the borders of Canapania. From where we were we could plainly see the oíd cráter of Vesuvius and the breech made during that famous eruption of 79 A. D. when Pompeii was buried. The cráter then was four times as large as now. Seven o'clock came and we began the descent, a much easier task than the ascent. Vergil says "the descent to Avernus is easy ("egt facile). If he had had Vesuvius in miad he would have said the ascent to Avernus is hard, "hic labor est." We descended by a more direct path than the one going up. Jumping from foot to foot in the loose einders, which would elide along with us and eend us much further down than our mere jump would. This was exciting and needed cool nerves ; for if one foot became in any way entangled a fall head long into the rough einders would be the result. We stopped for breath and air, for the heat was continually pouring from the sides of the volcano. Looking back we saw the bright stream of lava issuing from the crevasses ot' the mountain not far from where we had been standing. We could not see it before because the sun had been shining. It was now fast growing dark and the fires in the volcano could be plainly seen. A perfect river of fire flowed from the mountain and crackling einders rolled down the steep sides into the valley below. The darker it got the finer was the appearance of the lava stream whieh looked for all the world like an immense forge. No wonder Vulcan hung around Olympus and let his Cyclops do the work, forging armor for gods and héroes. I think Vulcan showed good taste in this regard at least. After one half hour's precipitious descent we reached the horses. Mounting them we beicari the sliding process on them al80. The slow pace we had complained of in coming up was just what was needed in going down. The guide riding behind would cry "Arrant" and the pace was quickened. Another bour's riding brought us to the main road and in one half hour more the horses brought us up before the hotel. It was 9 o'clock. We had made the ascent in 6 hours and returned unscathed. A good supper and a tip for the guide made us all happy. We turned in for the night vowing that we would never go any nearer the lower regions than that. We had had all we wanted and were entirely satisfied. Such a trip is worth doing once in one's life time and once only. Thig was our acensúa a verno.

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Subjects
Old News
Ann Arbor Register