stant shrinking of the earth itself and by the
contraction of the outer surface as it settles on the plastic center
underneath. Fissures are caused by these foldings, and as these
fissures reach down into the earth the pressure is removed from the
rocks and the compressed steam in them and it explodes with tremendous
force.

"The rocks containing the water are blown into dust, which sometimes
is carried so high as to escape the power of the earth's attraction
and float by itself through space. After the explosions have occurred
lava pours forth. This is merely melted rock which overflows like
water from a boiling kettle. But the explosion always precedes the
flow, and one will notice that there is always an outpouring of dust
before the lava comes."

Professor W. J. McGee, of the Smithsonian Institution at Washington,
says: "It may be that a violent earthquake tremor came after the
volcanic eruption, but it does not necessarily follow that the two
travel together. Oftentimes we hear of earth tremors with no apparent
accompaniment. This was true of the Charleston earthquake in 1886.
Earthquakes are caused by mysterious disturbances in the interior of
the earth. The most commonly accepted belief is that massive rock beds
away down in the earth, at a depth of twelve miles or more, become
disturbed from one cause or another, with the result that the
disturbance is felt on the earth's surface, sometimes severely,
sometimes faintly.

"Probably the most violent earthquake in history occurred about ten
years ago at Krakatoa. The explosion could be heard for more than one
thousand miles, and the earth's tremors were felt for thousands of
miles. The air was filled with particles of earth for months
afterward. The air-waves following the explosion are believed to have
passed two and one-half times around the globe. The face of the land
and sea in the vicinity of the eruption was completely changed."

Dr. E. Otis Hovey, professor in the Museum of Natural History, New
York, offers the following explanation of the Martinique disaster:

"A majority of volcanic eruptions are similar in cause and effect to a
boiler explosion. It is now the accepted belief that sudden
introduction of cold water on the great molten mass acts as would the
pouring of water into a red hot boiler. It causes a great volume of
steam, which must have an outlet. You can readily see how water could
get into the crater, located as this one was--on an island,