Forty villages were destroyed by the eruption of Papandayang in Java, in 1772, when the whole mountain was blown up by repeated explosions, and a large lake left in its place.

By the great eruption of Tomboro in Sumbawa, in 1815, 12,000 people were destroyed, and the ashes darkened the air and fell thickly upon the earth and sea for 300 miles around.

Even quite recently, since I left the country, a mountain which had been quiescent for more than 200 years suddenly burst into activity.

The island of Makian, one of the Moluccas, was rent open in 1646 by a violent eruption which left a huge chasm on one side, extending into the heart of the mountain.

It was, when I last visited it in 1860, clothed with vegetation to the summit, and contained twelve populous Malay villages.