AN AUSTRALIAN VOLCANO

Press, Volume LIX, Issue 11398, 8 October 1902, Page 7

AN AUSTRALIAN VOLCANO

RUMOURED ACTIVITY OF MOUNT ELEPHANT.

SETTLERS LEAVING THE LOCALITY

United Press Association—By Electrio Telegi_ph—Copyright. (Received October Bth, 12.44 a.m.) MELBOURNE, October 7. It is rumoured in Ballarat that Mount Elephant, 32 miles from the city, has been •aaitting smoke for some days past. Fire has now appeared on the summit, and the settlers in the district ar. moving to a safe distance.

In the course of a statement with reference to the recent earthquake in Adelaide, Professor David, of Sydney University, speaking of tihe numerous* extinct volcanoes of Australia, said:—"lfc is highly improbable that any of these extinct- volcanoes will again burst into eruption without plenty of warning. The warning comes e_iefly in the form of severe and repeated earthquake shocks. It is unlikely, fherefore, as the South Au-traiian geologists have already pointed out, that volcanic eruptions will follow the recent earthquake shocks unless they are rapidly repeated, and, in any case, as the earthquake energy a-ecently developed in South Australia seems fo have been greatest at the southern end of the north and south cracks, any eruptions which may have already taken place, or which may yet occur, are likely to be submarine. It should also be added that, while nearly all volcanic eruptions are immediately preceded by earthquakes, only a small percentage of earthquakes acre followed by volcanic eruptions^—so vastly does the number of earthquakes exceed the number of volcanic eruptaonsi."