The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-12-03
WAS NOT AN ERUPTION
AyaIanches on Mount Rainier s
PERCEPTIONS Sides.
VIEWS OF MOUNTAIN CLIMBERS.
Ctxsrvssfsp ans Sketches Made OF she
Mountain by MAJ tngFshsn
sad u. n Holmes.

Daring sh. greater part Of the afternoon
x...s,sav The air vas crisp and clear and
Mount Rainier 1as plainly visible, ana
al aoubt - 20 whether the SUN mis- OF tue
mountain bad not undergone ehangs
vas dssnslled The mountain was closely
observed BY MAJ. r. 8 Ingraham and H.
K. Holmes both mountain climbers Oh
reaorn, who assembled the mountain ssss
summer and remained on the Summit over
night. sleeping inside the crater nm,
where the steam from the snonlcerng
volcano kept them warm. Their oossrvs-
tlons resulted IN the conviction tnas
the change on the mountain - due 70
series Of tremendous ayaisncoes
and NOS 70 an eruption. and MAJ ingFa-
hans gives very clear and feasible Ell
plantation OF the substance many people
believed was smoke rising from the crater
Mr.. Holmes and his daughter. Miss Ruth
Holmes speat good portion OF the day
viewing the mountain through gaass,
and Miss Holmes csevsriy sketched the
appearance Of the summit as q appeared
through the glass, showing plainly that
the mountain had undergons radical
change IN some respects.
In the drst place. Liberty Cap stands
out more boldly than Ii did. and to the
right OF the peak appears rugged peak,
which vas never before observed and IS
supposed 10 have been caused by two ava
lanehes whieh have carried away the Ice
and sno. forming the peak ~ seen. On
the left of Liberty Cap the change Is radi-
cal, and there appears indications OF q
great avalanche a. the head of the Win
thrope glacier. The avalanche has taken
out the snow, ice and earth TO great
depth, and there appears bun OF black
rock loo feet or more ia height on the face
OF newly formed canyon. and the slide
Is LOO feet or more in length. Ii Is also
very likely that other avalanches have
occurred on ths other side Of the noun
tain ia the vicinity OF the Pay ailup & acser.
Mai. Ingraham accounts for the appear
ance Of what looked like smoke By saying
that possibly when the mountain was first
observed the avsianches we're carried down
the mountain side and fine snow was ear
ried back up the mountain by the air cur
rents in the canyon and appeared on the
summit as smoke. The force of the slides
must have been inconceivable: rocks we're
very probably ground to powder in their
mad digit down the mountain. and the
dust caused By their destruction was. like
the fine snow, swept back up tue canyons.
and rising from the summit accounts for
the dense black smoke seen by many poo
pie. Thus il is the theory OF an eruption
Is completely exploded, and beats out the
statement previously made ia the Fosr-
IsTELLIGEscER that an unusual phenomena
had occurred on the mountain aud that il
had undergone change In general APP
pearance.
Ii has without doubt been many years
since such an avalanche has taken place
on the rugged sides Of Mount Rainier.
perhaps 100 or even 800 years, and it
may DO that the removal of so great a
quantity Of earth will result Ina some
changes of the route followed by mountain
climbers, although at this distance the
statement cannot DO verified. The causes
which led up 10 the disturbance of the
glaciers il probably explained by the I'M
usually heavy fall of snow on the mountain
during the past month. the great weight
OF which had tendency to start a small
slide, which within q short time grew 20
gigantic proportions and probably con-
sinued for several hours. The extent of
the disturbances on the opposite side of
the mountain of course cannot be ascer-
tssned at present. and the observation
must bs made from point elsewhere than
Ia Seattle.
A part of the crater rim. with Colum-
bias crest ia ths distance, vas plainly
visible. and the indications are that no
eruption has taken place, and the FIRST
story To the effect that Colnmbia's crest
had disappeared is thus disproved. The
appearance OF the crater rim. which APP
pears a. slight depression and can be
traced by = delicate line OF black rocks,
amply indicates that there has been no
disturbances in that quarter. All OF the
trouble has taken place n considerable
distance below the crater ran, above the
sncw being apparently very deep and
qaite undistuFeed. 1t is fortunate that
the air was such yesterday that the mount
aan could too plainly seep. for Ii effectually
dssposes Of the mystery OF the phenomena
and the opinion OF the two leading alpine
authorities IN the state cannot bat settle
the question Tor all time 90 come.