Council Bluffs bugle. [volume] (City of Council Bluffs, Iowa) 1853-1857, 1855-12-04

ltte aftsrnoon r. |IesSa at6e sasnj
kis uncle VI - r. pums afpaG
T. to ! clod1 To- ovsq . he 1ains
fN3tles, 10 Snaps rks huge pins-tree sAoq
Iine I'D to great heiaht Ard extending OUT
ttFsxcAss. fhS sf64st6Sif sSip'eot st The clol
which seemed to be cempossd OF earth -
in bOst to cross the bay and examine int9
Az he approached thp coast, the red hot
ders and, stones fell into the boat, and
was obliged to retreat He proceeded RI
6tabieon the coast, where he went to -
the night with his friend Pomponianus, an
retired 70 rest and fell asleep. The court, r.
the course of the night being almost allsl
with stones and ashes, = was awakened, al
| With Pomponiasus and the rest Of the conl@
psny consulted whether Il would be mo1t
prudent to trust to the houses, which nov
shook from side to side with frequsas "a
violent conclusions, Or fly TO the epen Ael1S
where the calcined stones aud cinders, thos
light indeed, yet fell in large showers, and
threatened destruction. In this Distress they
resolved upon the fields as the less danger-
Gus. They went out having pillows tied up
on their heads with napkins as their sole de-
fence against the storm of stones that fell
around them" Here the suphnrions flames
appear TO have burst around ghem and Pliny
fell dead, probably sulocatel by the nox-
Iious vapors.
In second letter, the younger riiny gives
more full account of the phenomena -
te0ding the eruption, and hi
| soription cannot fail to be interesting to eve
~ reader even at the present day.
ssThere had been, for many days before,
some shocks of an earthquake, which the
less surprised Us, as they are extremely fire.
oueur in Campania; but they were SO par
| tioularly violent that night, that they not
only shook everything about as, out seemed
| indeed TO threaten total destruction. Tho
it was now morning, the light was exceed
insiy faint and languid the buildings all a.
/ round us tottsred, and though We stood up
on open ground, yet as the place was narrow
and confined, thore was no remaining there
| without danger: VIC therefore resolved TO
quit the town. The people followed Us in
! the utmost CONSERVATION; and as to mind
distracted with terror, every suggestion
seems more prudent than its own, they pres
sed In great crowds about US IN our way out.
! Having got TO a convenient distance from the
! houses. we stood still in the midst of dam
cerous ana dreadful scene. The chariots
which We had ordered TO be drawn out were
so apitated backwards and forwards, though
upon the most level ground, that We could
not keep them steady, even by supporting
them with large stones. The sea seemed 10
roll back upon itself, and to BE driven from
its banks by the convnlsiye motion of the
(, earth. Ii is certain, at least, that the shore
! = H. blx,1 ,tar Il fhnk
sea animals were left upon it. On the other
side, black aud dreadful cloud, bursting
with an igneous serpent vapor, dartlng out
long train of fire, resembling flashes of
| lightning, but much larger. SooE the cloud
seemed TO descend and cover the whole o.
cean, As it entirely hid the island of Caprea
and the promontory of Misouum. My moth
er strongly conjured me to make my escape,
which, a. | was young, Nigh: easily do;
Is for herself, she said, her ago aud corpu-
lency rendered all attempts OF that sort i'm
possible. However. she woald willingly
meet death if she could have tho satisfaction
oil seeing that she was not the occasion Of
mine. But absolutely refused to leave her,
and taking her hand, led her on she COM
piled with great reluctance and not without
many reproaehes to herself for retarding my
aighs The ashes now began to fall upon US
though in no great quantity. turned my
| head and observed behind US thick smoke
which came rolling after US like torrent.
4 | proposed while We had light, to turn out Of
| the nigh road, lest she should he pressed TO
death in the dark by the crowd which follow
ell US We had scarce stepped out OF the path
! when darkness oysrspread US, not like that
| of cloudy night, or when there is no moon
but Of room when it is shut up and all the
| lights are extinct. Nothing was TO be heard
| but the shFieks Of women, the screams OF
children and the cries of the men some cal
| ling for their children, others for their pa
rents, others for their husbands, and only dis
tinguishing each other by their voices; one
! lamenting his own fate, another that Of his
family; some wishing to die from the verX
fear Of dying; some lifting their hands to the
gods but the greater part imagining that
! the last and eternal night was come which
was to destroy the gods and the world to-
gether. At length a glimmcring light APP
reared, which we imagined to be rather the
forerunner Of an approaching burst Of flames,
as in truth it was, than the return OF day.
However, the fire fell at q distance from u.s.
/ Then again we were immersed in thick dark
ness, ana Il heaVy shower Oh aeAos ralhed
on US. which We were obliged every now and
/ then to shake off, otherwise We should have
! been crushed and buried III the heap.
/ At last this dreadful darkness was dissi-
pated by degrees like cloud of smoke, the
real day returned, and even the sun appear
! ed, though very family, as when an eclipse
is coming on. Every object that presented
itself to our eyes, which were exceedingly
weakened, seemed changed, being covered
over with white ashes as with deep snow.
We returned to Misenam, where We refresh
ed ourselves as well as We could, and passed
an anxious night between hope and fear, tho
indeed with much larger share of the lat
ter, for the earthquake still continued, while
several enthusiasts ran up and down, height
ening their own and their friends calanities
BY terrible predictions. -
This description relates to Misenum or
81