The New York herald., 1877-09-11
ECUADOR.
coroPAxI IN FLAMEs-TuE VOLCANO ERUPTs
AND DESTROYS MEN AND PROPERTY.

COIOPAxI i FIAMES-IuE VOLCANO EhUriS
AND DESTROYS MEN AND PROPERTY.
LArAcrscA July 80. 1877.
On the o5th of this month the volcano OF Cotopaxi
gave unmistakabls symptoms Of an irruption.
dense cloud of ashes completely concealed the peak,
and in the evening tho lishtning-ko flashes OF the
suberransan fires they Glully pierced or were re-
nected In the sshy cloud added 10 the majesty and
terror OF tho scene The first rays of dawn OF the
morning OF the Goth showed the mountain covered
With . thick black garment AT eight O'Clock hoarse
noise heard, distant AT first, but gradually ap-
proaching, until the entire population were IN mo-
tion, ono and all dominated by the ieeiing 'na'
something dreadful was about to take place AZ Ten
o'clock thcrc longer any doubt that tho always
increasing noise iorerunner oil an rruption on
being assured OF this, several 81 US mounted our
horscs rode out 10 observe the quantity OF water
and tho direction would take We soon saw enough
10 make tear that the enormous quantity OF water
vomi,cd out BY tho volcano would totally destroy the
c,ty ON this put spurs 10 my horse and rode back
TO tho town IN hopes OF being OF use IN assisting some
ro their nearest and perhaps only safety in case Of
iuondasion. Nor was mistaken IN my prognostica-
taona ior tho torrent succnt To have destroyed
the CITY had its not been turEed In the most
uncx pected, unhoped Tor manner
A GREAT FLOOD.
S.pe.ms of water from all the cratcrs at
on the Caao side, sweeping away everything in their
course down 10 tho ''potreros'' OF San Augustin.
Another Irresistible torrent followed the course VI the
Saoumaa RIVER destroying everything before IT, The
hacienda OF Sisnor Donoso IS In ruins the very soil
CONC or tho place OF Ssnor Larrca nothing is left The
river carried on 500 head OF cattle which were at
sure in tho ieds. The Asques River ovorfowed and
caused great damage The Cutuchi overhoweu the
"potrsros" Of Rumipamba and ran into The Puma.
cupchi carrying everything before It, The splendid
machine shop went down ike card house at
the first rush OF the waters. So did the
various mills except the 'Molina do Boveda," cell
ebraed tor its resistance TO formor hoods In
word, this entire district was like
sea- and tho iuundation would have destroyed the city
had portion OF the Hood ovcrnowed the sicsi
cac by way OF the Cutuch and another portion turned
OF by Yana-yacu, the latter beng the flood which
down through the 'Sato,' injuring many stores and
houses in the chaca suburb and Auyiones street.
LOSS or LifE
u is too to ceermine with any certainty the
destruction OF property but tho total loss OF e Will
reach. II 1t does not exceed one thousand persona At
least thousand head OF cattle have been destroyed
and OF smaller animals the loss is much greater. had
forgotten to state that in the midst Of the roar OF the
waters and the crashing o houses the volcano poured
out enormous quantities of cinders, which gradually
dakened the whole face OF the heavens and left N
the profound obscurity from ono O'Clock in tho al
ternoon until ten at night To-day the whole lace OF
tho country is covered with ashes and in addition TO
other mscres We have hunger staring us IN the face