Description of island and crater
On the 18th of July the captain of the Sicilian ship discovered
that an island had arisen out of the sea at the spot whence the
appearances before described had proceeded. It had already attained
a height of nearly twelve feet, and had in its centre a crater,
which vomited forth immense jets of steam, along with ashes,
cinders, stones, &c. The water which boiled in this crater was
reddish, and the cinders, which covered the sea all round the
island, were of a chocolate colour. The island subsequently
attained a height of upwards of 90 feet at its highest point, and a
circumference of about three-quarters of a mile. A channel of
communication was also opened between the sea and the interior of
the crater, which had a diameter of about 650 feet. The vapours and
other matters thrown up from the mouth of the volcano formed a
luminous column upwards of 200 feet in height.
On the 29th of September it was visited by the French gentleman who
gave it the name of Julia, and it then presented the appearance
which we have sketched. He landed with a party and proceeded to
examine the crater, in which he found a circular basin filled with
reddish water, almost boiling hot, and fresh. This basin was nearly
200 feet in diameter. There rose from the water bubbles of gas,
which made it appear as if it were boiling. The water was not quite
at the boiling point, however, yet the bubbles of gas were
sufficiently hot to burn the fingers.
These bubbles rose from a great depth, and each, on bursting, which
it did with a feeble report, threw out sand and cinders. At a short
distance from the crater there rose sulphurous vapours, which
deposited sulphur and salt. The loose dust and ashes forming the
soil of the island were hot, and walking on them was difficult. The
foregoing woodcut will give you an idea of the appearance which the
crater presented to those visitors.
Its disappearance
In the following month of October nothing remained of this
wonderful island but a hillock of sand and cinders; and at the end
of six months it had quite vanished. Soundings taken a few years
ago show ten feet of water over the spot, so that, although the
island has disappeared, there is still a shoal left behind. This
temporary volcano is best known in England under the name of
Graham's Island; so called after an English naval officer of that
name, who was the first to set foot on it, and who planted upon it
the English flag, so claiming it for his sovereign. The Sicilians
allege this to be the reason why it disappeared so soon--that it
was in a hurry to escape from under the English yoke.
Rise of islands at Santorin
Similar phenomena have been taking place during the past year,
1866, in the Bay of Santorin, situated in the island of that name,
which lies to the northward of Crete. There are several islands in
the bay, all apparently of volcanic origin, and one of them was
thrown up about three centuries before the beginning of the
Christian era. Last year their number was increased by a series of
eruptions similar in their attendant circumstances to those which
accompanied the upheaval of Julia. The first warnings were given on
the 30th of January 1866, by low underground rumblings, and slight
movements of the ground at the south end of New Kammeni, one of the
formerly upheaved islands in the bay. Next day these phenomena
increased in violence, and quantities of gas bubbled up from the
sea. On the 1st of February, reddish flames ascended from the
water, and on the 2nd there rose, out of the harbour of Voulcano,
an island, which was christened "George." The volcanic agitation
was prolonged during February and March--the upheaval of other two
islands being the result. Whether these additional islands will
continue permanently above water remains to be seen.