The Indianapolis journal., 1883-07-10
A PACIFIC COAST PERIL.
What Would Happen if the Volcano Under
Lake Tahoe Should Wake Up.

I Lake Tahoe Should Wake Up.
Virginia City Enterpri.e
In hundreds of places on the Pacific coast
are the so-called 'craters of extinct volca-
noes" So far as can be seen these craters
are really extinct at the surface, but deep in
the bowels of the earth their fires are proba-
bly, only slumbering In the Bishop-creek
country are many such volcanoes. and some
| of them seem to have been pretty lively less
than one hundred years ago, judging from
the fresh appearance of the lava streams on
their sides. But, to come nearer home, there
is an old crater on the big mountain above
American Flat, surrounding which are i'm
mense fields of lava Lake Tahoe ITSELF as
all geoioeists agree. occupies an immense
volcanic crater. This accounts for the
immense depth of the lake in the cen tral
parts.
Though these craters are spoken of as ex-
tinct, no one can say when volcano is dead.
A volcano that has slumbered for untold
ages is liable to start into life and destroy
everything in its neighborhood. The great
volcano of Vesuvius, now constantly active,
was described by ancients as a fatltopped
mountain, containing a deep circular valley
filled with vines and grass They did not
even suspect it of being a volcano. A large
populatan lived on the sides of the noun
tain, which was covered with beautiful
groves. So little was he terrible nature of
the valley on the top of the mountain sus-
pected that A. ID. 72, Sparticus eneamped
there with thousands of fighting men. Only
seven years 1ater-A. ID. 79-occurred a
sudden eruption that blew out the whole
top of the mountain. By this outburst
| Pompeii and Herculaneum were over
| whelmed.
The present is a time of great electrical and
subterranean disturbances We hear of great
earthquakes and volcanoes starting into life
| in all parts of the world Even here at home,
in California there have recently been many
severe earthquakes the first in nearly twenty
years that have shown the old-time force.
Almost any day the tremendous volcano that
lies slumbering under Lake Tahoe Is liable to
| assert itself. At the first burst all the water
in the lake would be blown thousands of feet
into the air and with the water all the steam
boats, sailboats and rowboats. Up into the
clouds would not only go all the boats on the
lake, but also all the fish in its waters with
millions of tons of powders, gravel and sedi-
| ment from the bottom of the old crater. OF
course the sudden emptying of the basin OF
the lake would be bad for Reno, but it's fate
could not be worse than that of the cities of
Pompeii and Herculaneum besides what are
few human habitations or few human
beings in great convulsions of nature. Vines
and gress grew over the crater of Vesuvius,
/ and soldiers camped III the beautiful basin.
but of sudden vines, grass, and all were
shot thousands of feet into the air. Over the
Tahoe crater is a beautiful pool of water, in
which are beautiful fishes. aud on which
are gallant steamers and vessels of all kinds,
| but the whole is as a mere bucket of water
compared with the great power that lies be-
low-pop, bang and all is in the air, and
the throat of TIE crater is again red hot, as in
ages past. All this may not come to pass this
summer, but it is bound to be seen sooner or
later-it is only matter of time. In case
| the election of the waters of the lake shall
instantly be followed by mighty column
of fire and flames the water may be turned
to steam lin falling back) before reaching the
ground and so Reno would escape drowning,
and the place only be covered by forty or
| fifty feet of moulton lava.