The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1890-05-31

OF white steam iloated dreamily in the
cool mountain air as the invalids re.
paired 10 their early bs.h. aud all
around was beautiful ON that bright
summer morning when. at $3.50, there
occurred an earthquake shock so
violent as 10 leave no room for doubt
that some mischief was brewing. Eff
teen minutes later this was followed by
a second and Yet more severe shock.
Another brief interval OF about ten
minutes and the earth began 10 heave
like tossing sea. rising and sinking
so that houses collapsed. totally
wrecked. aud people were violently
thrown down and became actually sick.
as II at sea. As standing was impos.
sible they tried TO crawl on all fours 10
whatever suggested shelter. but they
soon realized that all places were alike
unsafe.
The earthquake was Immediately
followed by An appalling aud unearth.
ly sound rs of the roar of thousand
thunder-claps, blending with the shrek
of all the steam-whistles and roaring
steam-boilers OF earth, aud ere the
terrified aud deafencd human beings
could recall their bewildered senses
they bcheld the whole mighty cone OF
Sho-Bandaisan blow bodily into the
air. where il oyerspread the whole
heavens with a vast. dense pail of ashes
aud mud-spray. blotting out the light OF
day and turning all to thick darkness.
Ere these had time 10 fall back TO the
earth there poured forth dark clouds OF
yapor aud such sitting gases AS we'll
nigh choked all living creatures. Then
leaping tongues of Internal flames.
crimson. and purple seemed 10 flash
right up To the heavens and after APP
palling earth-throes were succeeded by
showers Of red-hot ashes. sulphur. and
boiling water. accompanied by fearful
subterranean roaring aud rumbling. and
by rushing whirlwind of hurricane
force uprooting great trees aud hurting
them affair.
Another moment and there poured
forth floods of boiling liquid mud, which
swept down the mountain side with
such velocity that within period vari.
ously estimated AT from ten TO fifteen
minutes the scalding torrent was rush
ing past the village of Nagasake. on
the brink of the Nagase river. having
travelled ten miles from the crater more
rapidly than any express train. Prob
ably much of this fluid mud was hurled
direct through the air. rs was certain.
" the case with many hundreds OF
millions of tons which were blown up
with the first explosion. Evidently
the earthquake must have rent some
subterranean assure, through which q
great volume of waters suddenly
poured into the internal fires, general
ing stupendous volume of steam.
which must have continued to increase
and SO become more and more com
pressed rs volcanic fires and subter.
ranean waters continued their awful
struggle, converting the foundations OF
the mountain into cyclopean boiler,
"A million times magnitied, of the most
awful boiler explosion ever known
above ground.
The commissions of the mountain rent
great chasms from which uprose Jets OF
flame. ashes. and boiling water. and
many Of the wretched fugitives were
caught up by these awful fountains and
hurled on high with terrific force. To
fall back 20 earth all blackened and
boiled Some Of these poor corpses
were found caught on the boughs Of
trees. scaldcd aud mangled beyond re-
cognition. Others were battered aud
crushed by the red-hot stones and rocks
which had been hurled from the crater
10 the clouds and fell back TO earth with
awful violence.
The eruption continued for about
two hours. BY 10 a. M. It's violence
was spent though for hours afterward
the ground trembled and quivcred. as
well il might after So appalling lit of
passion. But In those two hours the
whole face Of thirty square miles OF
country Gin the formation OF vast fan
extending TO radius of five miles
from the central crater) was totally
changed. OF the mountain cone thus
suddenly transformed into steam
I boiler, there remains now only the
backa ragged overhanging precipice,
rising TO sheer height. yariously
estimated ai 600 or 1000 feet above o
bottomless crater Of about mile Ia
diameter. Thence with ccaseless roar
rise dense clouds OF suiIocating sulphur.
Gus steam, which sometimes clear of
sufficiently TO allow adventurous climb.
ciS holhchtail thinp,c vi TUG S'ce"-
ing mud below. Those who have
assembled that remnant Of the noun.
tain from the slope behind II. and SC
have reached the brink ofthat precipice.
have behcld such picture OF desola.
ton as seems scarcely to belong to this
earth.
All that was Little Bandai now lies
outspread In thick layer OF horrid
mud. varying IN depth from 10 to 100
fect--deep enough TO eiface every ac-