Page:Philosophical Transactions - Volume 004.djvu/144

 River; and having run in a full body for a good Stones cast or more, the extreamities thereof began to crust and curdle, becoming, when cold, those hard porous Stones, which the people call Sciarri, having the nearest resemblance to huge Cakes of sea-cole; full of a fierce Fire. These came roling and tumbling over one another, and where they met with a bank, would fill up and swell over, by their weight bearing down any common building, and burning up what was combustible. The chief motion of this matter was forward, but it was also dilating it self, as a Floud of Water would doe on even ground, thrusting out severall Armes, or Tongues, as they call them.

About 2. or 3. of the Clock in the night we mounted an high Tower in Catania; whence we had a full view of the Mouth, which was a terrible sight, viz. to see so great a mass or body of meer Fire. Next morning we would have gone up to the Mouth itself, but durst not come nearer than a furlong off, for feare of being overwhelmed by a sudden turn of the wind, which carried up into the Air some of that vast pillar of Ashes, which to our apprehension exceeded twice the bigness of Pauls Steeple in London, and went up in a streight body to a farr greater hight than that; the whole Air being thereabout all cover'd with the lightest of those Ashes blown oil from the top of this pillar: And from the first breaking forth of the Fire untill irs fury ceased (being 54. days) neither Sun nor Starr were seen in all that part.

From the outside of this pillar fell off great quantity of Stones, but none very bigg, neither could we discern any Fire in them, nor come to see, where that fiery stuff broke out, there being a great bank or hill of Ashes betwixt it and us.

At the Mouth, whence issued the Fire, or Ashes, or both, was a continual noise, like the beating of great waves of the Sea against Rocks, or like thunder a farr off, which sometimes I have heard here in Messina, though situated at the foot of high hils and 60. miles off. It hath also been heard 100. miles Nordward of this place, in Calabria (as I have been credibly informed,) whither the Ashes have also been carried: And some of our seamen have also reported, that their decks were covered therewith at Zant, though its likely not very thick.