I
think you have heard of the boiling springs in Iceland, which burst through
the ground, shaking it and making it tremble; just as the steam shakes the
lid of the teakettle; and rising almost to the clouds, with a noise like
fireworks; and perhaps you may have seen the hot springs at Bath, from
which a cloud of steam rises almost in the heart of the beautiful old city,
and which are believed to come from a depth of nearly a mile.
Such is the force of this steam that even the bed of the sea has been
heaved up by it into a burning mountain, from which great stones are cast
high into the air; while down its sides flow melted rocks and metals,
forming the lava which, when seen at night, looks like a stream of liquid
fire, but quickly cools into a river of mud. All these strange things tell
us terrible tales of the great heat which is somewhere in the heart of the
earth, and help us to understand the verse which tells us all we really
know about it: "As for the earth, out of it cometh bread: and under it is
turned up as it were fire."
New Zealand is a country where there are many hot springs, and several
mountains which were once volcanoes, but were supposed to have died out.
One of these, Mount Tarawera, was situated in what was called the Hot Lake
district, because there were not only boiling springs, but pools of hot
water there. The Hot Lakes valley was not only a lovely green spot, but
it was noted for the wonderful Pink and White Terraces, which were so
beautiful as to be one of the sights which people from all countries came
to see.
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