The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-07-09
in VOLCANIC DUST
STRANGE EXPERIENCE OF THE
NEVADAN.
Was For Thirty Hours In a Binding
Downpour of Volcanic Ashes From
the Eruption of Mont Pelee

SAN FRANCISCO. June 3O.-The
steamer Nevadan, arriving yesterday
from New York, was covered for r1nre
than a day by a dense cloud of dust
from Mont Eelee, the 4uar,rnI4ue ,vl-
cano, and for hours was compelled to
sound her whistles as in a fog. 1t was
meanwhile impossible for anybody on
board TO look to wndward. This was
on the morning of May Sth, when the
city of st. Pierre was destroyed, but
the Nevadan, far out of sight, was
steaming along 500 miles off Martini
que, in latitude 13 degrees north, lon
gitude Sc degrees west.
The Nevadan passed within thirty
miles of Martinique on May 5th, and
was at st. Lucia on the 9Th, taking on
coal There a French steamer was ly-
ing, having taken a number Of people
from st. Pierre after the first outbreak
of the volcano the previous day. The
refugees were much excited, and told
| story of a father and son having
been overtaken by lava from Mont Pc
lee while descending the mountains
slopes, the father being killed but the
son miraculously escaping. Two days
later, when the Nevadan had resumed
her trip was far at sea, the immense
storm of dust convinced the Nevadan's
commander and all on board that Mont
Pelee had again broken out, but parti-
culars of the disaster were not learned
by them until reaching this port yes
terday.
Early on the morninf of May Sth
there were heavy thunder clouds in the
sky and the weather looked bad" said
| Captain Weldon of the Nevadan yes
| terday. Still, the sea was smooth
| but very much discolored, being pea
| green in appearance. At $3.50 o'clock
! that morning the atmosphere was so
choked with dust that the whistle had
| to be sounded and an hour later the
! dust covered the steamer and was so
thick that we could not look to wind
| ward, 1t was its very worst at o'clock
that morning. All the forenoon the
dust was descending in a big cloud,
and did not entirely cease falling upon
The steamer until thirty hours had
passed. No damage resulted, of course,
but the fine powder, resembling emery
dust was everywhere. Great quaint
ties of 1t were swept into the sea- and
some was gathered up to keep as a
curiosity Though Captain Weldon
said that no unusual sounds were
heard on the rNevadan, others on board
said yesterday that on the 7th of May
while at sea, two reports, sounding like
Instant heavy blasting of cannonadinl
We're heard.
The trip of the Nevadan from New
York to this port was otherwise un
eventful. The time from New YorI
was siXty-one days, from st. Luci;
htty-three days, and from Corone
twenty-five days. The Nevadan wa
under the command of Captain c. w
Delano as far as COronel, on accoun
or his familiarity with the passag
through the Straits of Magellan, an,
at Coronel, in accordance with a prP
arranged plan, he was succeeded b.
the chief officer, Captain II. f. Weed
en-, who had been appointed permanen
commander of the new steamer. II
was recently master of the lake-buil
steamer Eureka, now on this coast
Captain Delano returned to New Yor
from Coronel by way of Panama. an
VIII bring out the Nevadan's siste
snip the Nebraskan, which is to b
launched in about a month.
The Nevadan is a fine moder
treighter of $500 tons capacity. and
designed to run between here and IN
Hawaiian Islands for the American
o Hawaiian steamship Company, alter
, natng on the route with the Nebra 5
kan. Each of the steamers is $50 fee
IN length, and both are oil-burner,
though the Nevadan used coal on m
TRIP from New York. She brought
cargo Of general freight from Ne,
YORK for local merchants. The date n
, her sailing for Honolulu has nor We
: been determined.