Fuogo, the Peak o f Teneriffe, Volcano Ifland, in the Queen
Charlotte Iflands,-the volcanos near New Guinea, and the Moluccas,
the Manillas, in Japan, Iceland, and the new difcovered iflands
between Kamtckatka, and North America: o f the latter fort is
Vefuvio, the volcanos in Kamtchatka and California : and the only
ones that Ihould feem to make an exception, are the volcanos in the
Andes, in South America and Mexico.; but even there, none is above
to o miles in a ftraight line, diftant from the fea. . Thofe which we
found in To-fooa, Ambrrym, and Tanna, belong to the firft clafs.
Thirdly, Volcanos are.to be met with, only in countries containing
a.good many pyritical, fulphureous fubftances. T h e red ochre we
found on the fides of the hill in T anna, where the ipiracles were
feen by us, looked exadtly like the remains Df a pyrites containing
fulphur and an iron, earth, which had been uftulated and Calcined
in a ftrong fire. Thofe who have vilited the neighbourhood o f
other volcanos, know very well that .fuch red, ochreous ftrata are
very common in their neighbourhood.
Fourthly, We found that after rain, the volcano in Tanna began
to rage and blaze more violently than before; which feems to
imply, that the moifture o f the rain, infinuating itfelf into the interior
parts o f the volcano, through various crevices and chinks, and
meeting thefe pyritical Jlrata, caufed a new fermentation, followed
by new eruptions and violent explofions.
C H A N G E S o f 6 uM G L O B E . H 5
Fifthly- Volcanos, no doubt, caufe great changes .on the furface
-of ourglo.be, by accumulating.the afhes and pumice ftones, which
they .continually emit, and by the ftreams o f lava, which often are
thrown up by them and run a -confiderable difiance, 'caufing great
•ravages in cultivated r e g io n sw e certainly have reafon to believe,
that the whole hill where the volcano was at Tanna, had been
oonfiderably enlarged by the afhes, pumice ftones, and lava. Nay,
th e foil o f the whole ifland had been altered by the continued fall
o f alhes, I obferved betides, .this, a cliff to the Eaft o f the volcano
•nearthe fea, at more -than ten miles difiance from it, which certainly
contained veftiges-of a great revolution. It confifted o f a black
dandy or gritty firatum, full o f pumice ftones, a great many, red,
•iochreofis ftones, and pieces o f lava.
S E C T I O N . I l l ,
On the D IM IN U T IO N o f the SE A and W A T E R .
't | VHIS fubjedt has o f late been treated in various manners“ by
the learned world. Some, have endeavoured to prove, that
the fea gradually made a regular receffion from the land, and they
have corroborated this, opinion, with every argument they could
..poflibly devife. In Sweden it has been the favourite opinion of
■ the.moft eminent philofophers. But as all opinions may be car-ridd
■ U too
C H A N G E S
OF O U R
G L O B E .
D IM I N U T
I O N OF
T H E S E A .