Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1883-09-06

SkASDErR. TERROR. AyD IMMENSE
F. Loss % LIFE.
Nkw YORK, Aug. a.-A London ca.
oieRram 70 the San says: Later reports
.rom bAsavla are of a more encourap-
ing nature, although details of the hor
tors OF the eruptions continue to coss
10. After the sudden subsidence of the
disturbances in the kingdom of Batavia
on Monday the eruptions seemed to Iose
tneir force for time and the people of
batavIa experienced feeling of relief
IN the hope that the worst was passed.
lhe q0ieter conditions continued until
about 10 o'clock, when the crsters once
more began to send up great masses of
destructive matter, although without
the force Of the former action. The
eruptions seemed 10 be more violent at
night than during the day. By IL
clock Sapandsyang, which IL 1904 feet
nlRh, was IN very active state of parox-
ysmal eruptions. Il was accompanied
by detonations, said to have been heard
many miles away in Samatra. Three
distinct columns of flame were seen to
rSe from the mountain to vast hight,
and its whole surface appeared as if
covered with fsry streams. which
spread to great distances on all sides.
stones fell for miles around and the
olack fragmentary matter that was car
NED into the air caused total darkness.
A whlriwlnd accompanied this eruption,
by which houseroofs, trees, and men
and horses we're carried into the air.
The quantity Of ashes elected was such
a. to cover the ground and ro0fs Of
houses at Denami 10 the depth of sever
| al inches. On Point Coay the floating
pumioe on the sea formed a lay0 two
feet thick, through which vessels crossed
the bay with great difficulty.
The rise Of vapor produced the ap-
pearance of a column several thousand
feet high, based on thu edge of the
crater. Ii appeared from a distance to
consist OF a mass of innumerable elob-
ular clouds of extreme whiteness, re-
senbiing vast balls of cotton rolling one
over the other As they ascended, inn
PEELED by the pressure Of fresh supplies
inoessantly urged upward by the con-
tinued explosions. At q great height
the column dilated horiz0utally, and
spread into dark and tufbid circles.
The cloud was shaped like an immense
umbrella. Forked lightning of great
vividneos and beauty vas continually
darting from different parts of the
clouds.
Suddenly the scene Was changed.
The mountain was split into seven parts
without moments warning, and where
Sapandayang stood alone there were
nov seven distinct peaks drawn up to a
great height. In tho seams which were
opaned could be seen great masses of
molten matter. From the assures
poured clouds of steam, and the black
elected lapillo flowed in steady stream
and ran slowly down the mountain sides
from a bed 200 or 800 feet in extent.
The exhalations Of carbonic acid gas
were so abundant that fowls and ami
mails in large numbers we're killed by it,
and few human beings lost their lives
in the same way. This proved TO be
the turning point of the eruption, for
| the great assures opened seemed to act
as safety-valves, through which the
streams Of lava gently flowed down
into the valleys. The volcanic fires,
though still burning at last advices, had
lost most of their feroeness, and the
streams created affOaded q vent without
being forced through the comparatively
narrow mouths Of the old orators.
One OF the queer incidents was the
L i
| of fourteen new volcanic mountains in
the Straits of Sunda, forming a com
plete chain in almost a straight line be-
tween Point st. Nicholas, on the Javan-
ESQ coast, and Haga Point, on the coast
of Sumatra, almost ON the tops of what
had been the Mersk and Middle Islands,
which sunk into the sea on Monday. SO
| serious are the changes ia the coast and
| entire formation Of the Straits of Sunda
that the British government and LlOyd's
this evening telsgraphed from London
to all foreign points warning vessels
that navigation of these waters had be-
| come exceedingly dangerous. In the
| city OF Bantam, where 1909 persons were
ut FIRST supposed to have persisted, the
bodies OF 300 have already been recOv
cred. Some 500 inhabitants at the iu-
terror town Of Warning are now known
70 have been killed, and at Talatra, ON
the coast, 800 bodies have been found.
From all over the Ialand come reports
lot loss Of life and property. Il ia
| thought at Batavia that the estimate of
1880 killed will not prove excessive.
On the lowlands of Batavia. where
the waters have receded and quieted
down, hundreds of bruised and man.
gled bodies are lying exposed and are
being buried as fast as possible, in order
to prevent the breeding and spread of
contagion. While there il some cause
of anxiety on this SCORE, il il thought
the greater number of bodies in the
interior we're so dried and scorchsd by
the hot lava and stones that they will
not putrefy. The bodies of those
| drowned by tidal waves can be taken
care OF with reasonable facility by the
coast sanitary corps, now getting rapidly
to work.
The captain of a steamer which was
in the Straits OF Sunda during the re-
cent volcanic eruption reports that ashes
fell on the deck Of his vessel to depth
of eighteen inches. He passed masses
OF floating pumice stone seven feet deep.
1t Ia estimated that 10000 persons lost
their lives at TiirinQiu.