Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 186?-1872, 1868-05-29
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The Santlwhirh Islands, which
have now special interests rs the
scene of the grandest volcanic de-
monstration ever know n, are thirteen
in number, lying ina carve,of which
the remotest points are $50 miles
apart. Only sever of these islands
are Inhabited, the others being small,
rocky and barren. The ldrgest and
eastermost of the group, Hawaii, on
which Mauno Loa,' the greatest of
volcanoes, is found, is about. 1000
square smiles In extent, and very
mountainousand volcanic. The sum-
nit of Mauna Loa is 10, 75s feet above
the level of the sea, but the chief
craterof the mountain, which Is three
and one-half miles long by two and
one-half miles broad, Is on Its south
east side, ,104 feet above the scar
Ordinarily this contains lake. Of
liquid fire, the reflection of which
upon the sky at night II glowing red.
A second crater, 1900 feet in length
and 5000 feet In width, on the sum
nit, seems TO be the one from which
| the present eruption began, but others
evidently contributed their full share,
especially the new opening in the
mountain, which Is two miles in
length. Some Idea of the terrible en-
energy of the outbreak may be formed
| from the fact that the column of stfioke
sent up was nearly eight miles In
height; the slope and part of the sum-
nit of q hill, 1900 feet high, were
lifted bodily and thrown through tho
air a distance of | 900 feet; mass Of
moist red earth, one mile In width,
was elected along the surface of the
mountain one mile In three minutes:
during the severest shock the jar OF
the earth was so violent that immense
precipices Were shaken from their
foundations and hurled down to the
general level; tidal wave from tho
sea, sixty feet high, was thrown q
quarter of mile inland; Il continuous
| fissure of the mountain was open
from the sea miles up toward the era.
ter, and there was shot up, new
island four hundred feet above the
sea. During the most violent earth
quake shock, all living things, and all
buildings Were, of course, thrown VIC
lently to the ground. The great tidal
wave swept away houses, churches,
cattle, human beings, in a flood higher
than the tops of the trees. The earth
eruption whelmed thirty persons in
moment. Except that the whole dis
trict Is comparatively inhabited, tho
loss of life would have been frightful.
AS it was about one hundred persons
and thousand horses and cattle los!
their lives by the floods of fire, earth
and water. Fifteen hundred shocks
of earthquake Were felt in ten days,
accompanied in many Instances, by
tidal waves only less powerful than
that already mentioned. A district
thirty miles in circumference Is laid
waste by the desolating gases poured
over everything from the bowels of
the burning mountain. Six miles in
land vast stream of lava is running
under ground, here and there sending
up jets of fire thousand feet high.--
Not only does the sea boil far and wide,
and roll back and forth in awful tides,
but its waters belch forth from tho
side of the mountain where the great
election of red earth. took place. The
terror of such events to those even
who escaped with life must have sur
passed all the agonies of ordinary
death by violence. What is burn
ing steamer to an island world burst
ing with floods of fire, shaken into
ruins, and threatened with the over
whelming inroad of the sea moved
from its foundations? The spectacle
must have been sublime beyond ali
description, If one could have look ed
on 1t calmly poised i'm mid air, but
what human brain could admit any
other than emotions of horror when
hell seemed opening from beneath,
when the jar and crash of the earth
quake shook off the heads of the
mountains and scattered cliffs and pre-.
cipices as driven sandalong the plain,
when all living creatures and all hui
man structures Were thrown violently
on the ground and terrible tide of
the sea rolled i'm over the ruins, while
over all rose the vast column ofsmolso
eight miles into the air! 1t Is be.
lieved that the worst lis already passed,
but after what has already taken
place it seems as If anything might
happen from the activity of these vol
canic forces. No such demonstration
has occurred within the knowledge of
human history.