New-York tribune., 1900-04-15
WRECKED MOUNT,1,.
THE EFFECT OF AN E4RTHor-,
SAN JACINTO, CALIFopN,,.

San Jacinto correspondence Of The
cisco Call. 'dh Fl,
a remarkable natural phenoroenor
lowed the recent series Of eartbo,-., AaS Z,
shook the southern end Of CaIiforriioa'A I'd
the giant spur Of San Jacinto Paat1 a. One
it's millions of tons Of earth and rCcI mo-
valley beneath. There il lies. eleven roiIhto INTO /
east OF san JacintO, a tUmbIine mae Sol
six hundred acres Of trees and ROCKS LEA ~ ra'
menSe crevasses and cracks running zis1,-1.a - 1
dlrections- Lnere are Jammed peaks of
stone where hills We're torn asuuder- - Sa-
slanting preCtpices where the n0untai~Vle 4
company. In other places are s,res. "a,
shaped holes where the soil was sl1cIsa5 . ll1-
interior Of the earth and spots scarce s,- .i.a
across run through with cTeVasses who
the eye cannot fathOm. le
The news of this great mountain ,1,,
slow in reaching town The peak was -
Christmas Day by Grant l. Taa,gart sic.
Supervisor and formerly clerk cf 49, = Fl,sI
Court of California. together with Fore,.S SlI'.
Rouse. Their horses We're tied at an - -
of four thousand feet 10 a manzanita 80
Rouse proceeded 10 blaze a trail 80
Identical six hundred acres u De utilized =
of mountain fires "a
The terrific seismic shock that rs..,,--
JacintO's brick buildings occurred A. q
Christmas morning At 10 O'Clock tbss1-
officers saw the peak trembling and ~
constantly with Internal rumbng bu, 80
blorS had been constantly recurring siD.
ing the men We're not alarmed TbaJ b - -
particular spur after an hours WOW
Rouse lives about two miles below tb@
tain, and although shocks We're as s. -
six each day, he did not remember a11--
one which occurred six days later q,
p. m At that time a great b0onino, az a,
ing came from the spur above him anS
dish in his house was shaken from -
board shelves. lie is Of the opinion tS.
was the date of the collapse. for clouds -
could be seen issuing from the direc4io, :
mountain The great Christmas .ea-..- y
must have caused the roof cf the subts--ti--
cavern TO split and the constantly -
temblors caused the mountain peak 10 sii-
the cavity.
Mr. Rouse did not revisit the spur untr Il
days ago. and when he sought his mar,
tree at the head OF the trail to tie his -
ne found that the tree lay uprOOted 6f--
below. over the edge Of a wide crevassa 49, !
gently slopinS mOCntainsides lay in a t1-
mass Of roots. rocks and deep fssures :
southeastern edge, half mile awav sfoo, : :
tact, but long slant OF blue shale srnoc..
glass. at an angle Of 10 degrees. shoVsl i
where the great mass Of earth had moved II
the suddenly opened abyss 10 the nOr+br-.
The temblOrS still occur weekly ana 49,
CURED last night. on Sunday everybody +, .
city drove % the foot OF the spur, and on -
back completed the steep ascent on a ns-
preclpitouS bride path TO the scene II iS
climbing the Alps.
Once there. however. the view that is oB,..
we'll repays the visitor for his weary trim IN.
was once a gentle incline. running from a -
to small valley, is now 4 cavern sena-ss-
the ridge from the valley. There are crsrr
every few feet in the earth. some as viis J
six feet and over twenty feet deep BIlshas II
small trees have been torn I'D BY the roots -
hurled down for many feet. IN one pIsca p
oak tree about fifteen feet high and tbras 4.
in diameter was moved a distance OF ffrv p
The soil is so broken and cracked thar a.
few steps one is apt 10 sink up 10 the Erss
For three-quarterS of mile all thai can ,
seen is a mass of upturned bushes and br1.ss
hanks. What were once the lowest basins n
now the highest.
But the most remarkable thing to be ssa- y
the tract is the half mile wide stratum OF ei4e,l
material The composition is black and Of -
fine grain II shines. and is even CLASSY 2.
meath the surface OF this crystalline rock mcs
found. This is no doubt igneOus rock
short time ago it was surely molten for benss,
the hardening crust it is soft enough to be mOug
ed into any shape with the hands. Two or IN.
feet below this is an intruded rock coarys
grained and probably granite. This condition
the earth was first discovered on March s bv
W. Rouse.
There was some great heat connected with b
disturbance for the earth on the whole five II,
dred acres has been rendered almost iientic
to ashes. and every sign Of plant life has drs