Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1892-08-12
The Hanging Terror Office.

seems, DIV lnc Careful anu SClcHlliC
study which Professor f. A. Forcl, OF
Morges, has made, that high glacier
on the Tetes-Rousses, SO called, at an
attitude of more than 10000 feet, let
fall a glacial mass of more than 81, 600,
600 cubic feet down height Of at least
5000 feet; that this enormous mass OF
ice and rock disengaged so much heat
by lis fall as to melt as well as pulyer-
ize the glacier-fiagment, which was
further melted by contact with the
warm surfaces and substances it en-
countered on its way, and was thus con-
verted into viscous mud, and in that
form rushed suddenly down on the un-
lucky villages. The result was shock
inc. Professor Forel thus describes it ::
..The molten mass was fluid enough
to slip down a slope of 10 feet in q 100 !;
it was dense enough to overthrow
everything in its passage. ] estimate
that it spent about half an hour, per-
haps little more in reaching the Arye
from the point of its fall. In a few min
utes everything had gone by and there
remained only coating of mud, COW
ering all the ruins with its infected and
viscous slime. In this enormous fall
from so great height, extending hori-
zontally more than eight miles, l find
the most gigantic example know of a
glacial avalanche Avalanches of Z 900
feet fall, extending four and q half
miles, have been known, but all others
are of much smaller dimensions. The
condition of the muddy channel in
which the substance ran, shows that it
was viscous and not fluid mass f; for
alongside of heaps of mud, which l saw
drying slowly, flowers were to be seen,
only from two to four inches of, and
ears of wheat that had not been wet
nor soiled by the mud. Again, i'll the
houses flooded but not destroyed-in q
house at Bionnay, for instance, used for
q school, the floor was covered with
mud, but few inches higher up the
scholars desks were not soiled by
dirty water, the walls were dry, &c.
Now, dirty water, in order to deposit
layer of mud II inches thick, must
have been or S feet deep; but here
the sheet of water did not much rise
above the mud, as l saw it three days
after it had been deposited
What adds to the singularity of this
disaster is that no such avalanche has
been known TO occur in that region,
nor was this huge and distant glacier
at all dreaded by those who lived near
it. Professor Forel says "Neither at
st. Gervais nor at Bionnay did anyone
know of any such calamity before; but
it is likely that this glacier did detach
few avalanches each year, only, be-
irg small, they did not reach the vii
lagos"
In the three villages more than $50
persons seem to have been destroyed.
The houses that remain are mostly un-
inhabitable. Where the soil has not
been swept away the crops are choled
up with a thick layer of mud. The
small animals have perished. Happy
are the families" says one writer, "that
have been annihilated with all that
they possess The question is now
raised whether the disaster could not
have been prevented. Professor Forel
says:
1--WE know that the glaciers of the
Mt. Blanc group are at present all in
creasing and l find in this event a
mournful illustration of a report ad-
dressed by me last spring to the gov
ernment of the Canton Valais, in which
I set forth that all the catastrophes OF
the high Alps are due to an advance OF
some glacier. l also called upon the
authorities of that canton to have their
glaciers inspected, since all of them
were beginning to grow and move for.
ward. The Cantonal Council attended
to the request, and gave the matter in
charge of the inspector of forests.
did not expect, however, confirma-
tion so speedy Of my fears. But could
this calamity have been foreseen and
would it have been possible for an in
telligent supervision to have given no.
tice to those in danger? In the present
case think not. Under other condi-
tons it would be possible. But here nc
one, as I think, could have suspected 9
danger so remote and yet so awful. {"
It seems that the particular glacier
responsible for this accident is not that
of Bionnay, nearest to st. Gervais, but
a more formidable one higher up. Be
yond the little village of Houches, the
first in the vale of Chamouni, not fan
from which, but still higher up, under
the rocky peakes of the Tetes-Rousses
in the best region for the chamois hunt
er, was this hanging terror, known
chiefly to these hunters, which sudden
ly slipped from its perch, slid down q
declivity of 20 feet in the hundred, pass
ed to the right of the glacier of Bion'
nay, and then, following ravine ofthe
mountain torrents, fell upon the I'LL
fated villages which became its prey.
Few could have guessed that such would
have been its course, even had they
known its situation or its condition.
1t should be added that the villages
destroyed, although in French territory
are but few miles from the border Of
the Swiss canton of Valais, which lies
on the headwaters ofthe Rhone and the
slopes of the Mt. Blanc range,