Page:Awful phenomena of nature -- burning mountains.pdf/4

 constantly emits smoke. Its height above the level of the sea is 3,900 feet, and it may be ascended by three different routes, which are very steep and difficult, from the conical form of the mountain, and the loose ashes which slip from under the feet; still from the distance it is not more than three Italian miles. The circumference of the platform on the top is 5,024 feet, or nearly a mile. Thence may be seen Portici, Capra, Ischia, Pausilippo, and the whole coast of the Gulf of Naples, bordered with orange-trees: the prospect is that of Paradise seen from the infernal regions.

On approaching the mountain, its aspect does not convey any impression of terror, nor is it gloomy, being cultivated for more than two-thirds of its height, and having only its brown top barren. There all verdure ceases; yet when it appears covered with clouds, which sometimes encompass its middle only, this circumstance rather adds to, than detracts from, the magnificence of the spectacle. Upon the lavas which the volcano long ago ejected, and which, like great furrows, extend into the plain, and to the sea, are built houses, villages, and towns. Gardens, vine-yards, and cultivated fields surround them; but a sentiment of sorrow, blended with apprehension about the future, arises, on the