The vulcano's, or, Burning and fire-vomiting mountains, famous in the world, with their remarkables collected for the most part out of Kircher's Subterraneous world, and exposed to more general view in English : upon the relation of the late wonderful and prodigious eruptions of Ætna, thereby to occasion greater admirations of the wonders of nature (and of the God of nature) in the mighty element of fire.

Of an exact Search and Enquiry made into the Moun∣tain Vesuvius, by Kircher, in the year 1638.

Having a very earnest desire, a long time, to understand the Mi∣racles of Subterraneous Nature, it happened that at the same time, by command of my Superiours, I undertook a voyage into Sicily and Malta, in attendance on the most excellent Prince Frederick, Land-grave of Hassia, at that time chief Admiral, now a most wor∣thy Cardinal, whose Confessor I was. Entring therefore into Sicily, I found such a Theater of Nature, displaying her self under won∣derful variety of things, as I had with so many desires wished for. Sith what ever thing occurs, in the whole body of the Earth that is wonderfull, rare, unusual, and worthy of Admiration, I found contracted here, as it were, in an Epitomie, by a certain industry of wise and sagacious Nature.

Being inflamed therefore with an huge desire of searching out all things particularly. Above all things, first I ascended Aetna, the fountain of all other Prodigious Effects in Sicily; that I might by my own experience, and with my own eyes, find out the wonderful things, which Historians of all ages have writ thereof. Then with utmost diligence I searched the Aeolian or Hophaestian, that is, the Laparitan Islands, now call'd the Vulcanello's, or Vulcanian Islands. And above all the rest; Strongylus (now Stromboli) and Vulcano. I search'd out also the Sicilian Straits, called Faro di Messina, no less dangerous for the incredible Reciprocations of its Ragings, than infamous for Shipwracks; with the wonderful motions of Scylla and Charybdis, and vicissitudes of their Ebollitions. And whatsoever things stupendous did occur, were presently committed to Table-Books; and after return home, seriously weighed and deliberated by solid and exact Reason, &c.

But in return home, with some certain private persons, we were by wonderful and unusual storms and ragings of the Sea, to the danger of our lives, forced upon the Shoars of Calabria, or Terra di Otranto; At the time of those horrible Earthquakes, and strivings of Nature, then outragious in those places; to the greatest peril of our lives. But had thereby opportunity of learning many Secrets of Nature. After the happening of all which, I had then a desire, being in those parts, to visit the famous Vesuvius also.

The Relation of which wonderful Earthquakes, now mentioned; we, according to our present method reserve to another place after∣wards; passing them by here, to give first his particular account of Vesuvius, (though last with him) which is our present Argument.