Smyrna times., 1883-09-05
Craters in Full Blast.
THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE SWALLOWED UP.
The Work Of the TOIcanic EruptiOnS on
the Island of JdUG.

the volcanic eruptions in that island
are much more serious than at first in
dicated. The disturbances began on
the island of Krakatoa, in the Strait of
Sunda, about fifteen miles off the coast
of Java. The deep rumblings were
distinctly audible at Surakerta and
Batavia, about forty-fve and twenty
two miles Respectively. Little alarm
was felt at first, but within a few hours
showers of stones began to fall at JOk-
jokerta, Surabaya and Serang. All
through the night showers of red-hot |
rocks and ashes fell, making complete |
darkness in all these towns. In Bata- !
via there was an occasional fall, and it !
was difficult to keep the street lights |
burning in the European quarter. BY
the next morning all communication
with Anjier was cut off, all the bridges
having been destroyed by the descend
ing rocks and ashes and the road rem
dered impossible.
THE CRATERS OF JAVA IN FULL BLAST.
The first eruptions were on Saturday
night week. On the following morn
ing the disturbances had extended be-
meath the waters of the strait, and they
were soon boiling and kissing violently,
while great waves dashed upon the
Javanese shores and the temperature
of the sea went up nearly twenty de-
grees. Even as far away from the
original point of disturbance as Madura
the furious waves were lashed into
mountains of foam as they came roll
ing in. The threating rumblings grad
ually became more and more distinct
and by noon the Maha Meru, the larg-
est of the volcanoes of Java, was belch-
ing forth flames at very alarming
rate. This eruption soon spread to the
Cunning Tengger, the crater of which
is the largest in the world, being nearly
four miles in diameter; the Cunning
Gunter and many other minor noun
tains, until more than third of the
forty-live craters of Java were either
in active eruption or seriously threat
ening it. Just before dusk great lu-
minous cloud formed over the Cunning
Gunter and the crater of that volcano
began to Vomit up enormous streams
of white, acid, sulphurous mud, besides
smaller quantities of lava. There were
rapidly successive explosions, followed
by tremendous showers of cinders and
enormous fragments, which were
hurled high into the air and scattered
in all directions, to fall, after the force
was spent, upon the valleys below, car
rying death and destruction. With
these terrible eruptiOns came sympa-
, thetic demonstrations from the sea.
The overhanging clouds were so sur
, charged with electricity that at one
time over fifteen huge waterspoutS
f were seen. These have continued at
somewhat long intervals ever since.
BURIED IN THE RUINS.
Men, women and children rushed in
, terror from their tottering dwelling
places, filling the air with their shrieks
! of horror Hundreds were unable tC
!. get out before the houses fell, ant
were buried beneath the great masse;
: of rocks and mud which were piled W
where few hours before all was peace
e happiness and fancied security. Th,
Cunning Tengger has not had an erup
ton before since the year 1900, wheI
an extent of land seventeen miles long
and seven broad was completely GOV
! cred with the white sulphurous mut
4 so peculiar to the eruptions of Java
The peak Of Cunning Tengger is 600
y feet high and the monument of fam
8 on top of this made a scene of very i'm
Il pressive grandeur. Every moment
I, huSe boulder, at a red or white heat
would be hurled from Tengger's crate
Q with terrific force, and, after goin
hundreds of feet in the air, would fal
G back with whir, perhaps crashin
!, through the matched roof of som
IL Chinese fisherman's hut or crush be
g meath its huge mass the form of som
e native peasant. Fissure after fissur
appeared in the sides of the mountain
and here and there in the valleys ther
r came great, yawning ohasm. On tn
+. elevated plains of Kediri and BandOn
70 the showers of stones, mud and Law
70 were not so frequent as in the lowe
4 portions of the island, but were sti
a quite destructive.
er IN A BLAZE OF FLAME.
il Much of the northern portion of tn
is island, which was covered with trac
IS of forest, was soon iu one great bla7
a. of flame. The red-hOt vomitings frol
X the craters had set fire to the trees, an
is as the giants of the woods fell one aft(
OF another, like so many sheaves of whe;
IS before a gale, the scene was one {
re awful grandeur. As the eruptions il
s. creased in frequency and violence IL
9n disturbance of the waters Surroundin
er the barren coast became more an
C. more violent. Here the waves rushe
to in terrific force up the steep, rocky il
"a cline, breaking upon the Overhapgir
N, crags and receding rapidly, leaving
de lave flow cooled just at the momel
Is when it was about to fall over a preC
'al pice and there remaining, quickly ha
as dened by contact with the waters al
re- forming distinct strata of black al
is. bright red, purple and brown lava, q
nd thrown about in the most eccentI
to masses, while huge peaks of basalt TO
at frequent intervals. There the wav
OF came whelming over q marshy pla
ID, along the shore, suddenly engulfing
ell hamlet of fishermen's rude houses an
Ill turning suddenly back, swept aw;
almost every vestige of what had
moment before been scene of bustlil
49, activity, where family after family HI
r. been rushing around in the vain e
,n e deavor to save their effects and g
"a ~ away with their lives from the awi
"a combination of elements threateni
"' them. What a few hours before we
ferlile valleys covered with flourish
2 r. plantations of coffee, rice, sugar, indi
~, or tobacco, the staples of the islar
- were soon but mud-stone and lay
~ ~ covered fields of destruction and ru
nv NJ Probably not single crop of Java W
-, -, will be saved.
f. A PORTION OF BATAVIA SWEPT AVA
OOf At the entrance to Batavia was
hat large group of houses, extending alo
ost the shore and occupied by ChinamC
)ne This portion of the city was entire
rst swept away, and of the twenty-f
tes thousand Chinese who lived ON t
CHI swampy plain it is hardly probal
the that more than five Thousand manag
len to save their lives. They stuck
be- their homes till the waves that wash
lad them away came, fearing the torrel
it. of the flame and lava of the inter
lws more than the torrents of water fir,
ose the exterior. The population of Eu
ley peans and Americans in Batavia S
eco fered o loss of perhaps eight hundi
NY, souls, out of the three thousand f
hundred whites living there. Many
the bazaars in the higher portions
mo the city were demolished, and it is
~ possible to make any estimate of
r.; great pecuniary loss. The Exchal
Of and the military hospital suffered gr
~ damage.