The largest ones mostly fell back into the crater; but the smaller ones being thrown higher, and more acted on by the wind, fell in immense numbers on the leeward slope of the cone" (of course, making it bigger and bigger, as I have explained already to you), and of course, as they were intensely hot and bright, making the cone look as if it too was red-hot.

But it was not so, he says, really.

The colour of the stones was rather "golden, and they spotted the black cone over with their golden showers, the smaller ones stopping still, the bigger ones rolling down, and jumping along just like hares." "A wonderful pedestal," he says, "for the explosion which surmounted it." How high the stones flew up he could not tell.

"There was generally one which went much higher than the rest, and pierced upwards towards the moon, who looked calmly down, mocking such vain attempts to reach her." The large stones, of course, did not rise so high; and some, he says, "only just appeared over the rim of the cone, above which they came floating leisurely up, to show their brilliant forms and intense white light for an instant, and then subside again." Try and picture that to yourselves, remembering that this was only a little side eruption, of no more importance to the whole mountain than the fall of a slate off the roof is of importance to the whole house.

And then think how mean and weak man's fireworks, and even man's heaviest artillery, are compared with the terrible beauty and terrible strength of Madam How's artillery underneath our feet.
C / | \ / | \ A /---+---\ E / | \ /-----+-----\ E Ground / | B \ Ground -- -------/ | \------------ | D | | D | D | -- +-----+--+---+-----+------ | | | | | | Now look at this figure.