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Passages from the Life of a Philosopher

Chapter 28: CHAPTER XVI. EXPERIENCE BY FIRE.
By Charles Babbage
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About This Book

This work presents a collection of reflections and experiences from the life of a prominent philosopher and mathematician, exploring his thoughts on various subjects, including science, technology, and society. It delves into the development of the Analytical Engine, highlighting the challenges and triumphs encountered in its creation. The author shares insights into his interactions with notable figures of his time and discusses the broader implications of his inventions. Themes of innovation, intellectual pursuit, and the relationship between knowledge and society are woven throughout, providing a glimpse into the mind of a pioneering thinker.

CHAPTER XVI. EXPERIENCE BY FIRE.

Baked in an Oven — A Living Volcano — Vesuvius in action — Carried up the Cone of Ashes in a Chair — View of the Crater in a Dark Night — Sunrise — Descent by Ropes and Rolling into the great Crater — Watched the small Crater in active eruption at intervals — Measured a Base of 330 feet — Depth of great Crater 570 feet — Descent into small Crater — A Lake of red-hot Boiling Lava — Regained the great Crater with the sacrifice of my Boots — Lunched on Biscuits and Irish Whisky — Visit to the Hot Springs of Ischia — Towns destroyed by Earthquake — Coronets of Smoke projected by Vesuvius — Artificial Mode of producing them — Fire-damp visited in Welsh Coal-mine in company with Professor Moll.

Baked in an Oven.

CALLING one morning upon Chantrey, I met Captain Kater and the late Sir Thomas Lawrence, the President of the Royal Academy. Chantrey was engaged at that period in casting a large bronze statue. An oven of considerable size had been built for the purpose of drying the moulds. I made several inquiries about it, and Chantrey kindly offered to let me pay it a visit, and thus ascertain by my own feelings the effects of high temperature on the human body.

I willingly accepted the proposal, and Captain Kater offered to accom­pany me. Sir Thomas Lawrence, who was suffering from indis­po­si­tion, did not think it prudent to join our party. In fact, he died on the second or third day after our exper­i­ment.

The iron folding-doors of the small room or oven were {214} opened. Captain Kater and myself entered, and they were then closed upon us. The further corner of the room, which was paved with squared stones, was visibly of a dull-red heat. The thermometer marked, if I recollect rightly, 265°. The pulse was quickened, and I ought to have counted but did not count the number of inspirations per minute. Perspiration commenced immediately and was very copious. We remained, I believe, about five or six minutes without very great discomfort, and I experienced no subsequent inconvenience from the result of the experiment.