Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1902-06-05
TO MONT PELEE'S CRATER.
HeiIprin. of the National Geo
graphical Society.

kfaphhtaA Ftt
Fort de France, Island of Marti-
nique, June 1.-The National Geo.
graphical society has scored a great
triumph through its representa-
tive here. Prof. Angelo Heilprin,
who, yesterday morning, with three
guides, assembled to the top OF the
crater on the summit of Mont Pelee.
Prof. Heilprin is also president OF tbs
Philadelphia Geographical society.
Prof. Heilprin had gone to the
plantation Vive, which is near the
crater, in company with Fernand
Clerc and Mr.. Reid, landed pro-
prietors of Martinique. This expedi-
ton had been especially organized by
United States Consul Ayme and Prof
Heilprin, and was led by the latter.
The expedition left Fort de France
Thursday, May 30, at noon. Friday
was spent in studying the newly
formed craters on the north flank of
of the mountain. Saturday morning
Prof. Heilprin, determined to attempt
the ascent to the top of the crater,
and with this purpose in view, he set
out at five o'clock.
The volcano was very active, but,
amid a thousand dangers, Prof. He'll
prin reached the summit and looked
down into the huge crater. Here he
spent some time in taking careful OBJ
servations. He saw a huge cinder
cone in the center of the crater. The
opening of the crater itself is a vast
crevice 500 feet long and $50 feet
wide.
While Prof. Heilprin was on the
summit of the volcano several violent
explosions of steam and cinder-laden
vapor took place, and again and again
his life was in danger. Ashes fell
about him in such quantities at times
as to completely obscure his vision.
One particularly violent explosion of
mud covered the professor from head
to foot with the hideous, viscid and
semi-solid matter. He still persisted
in his study and observations, how
ever, and twice more was showered
with mud. He learned, as has been
suspected, that there were three
separate vents through which steam
issued. Full details of the professors
observations can not be had until he
returns Il Fort de France.
Prof. Heilprin's journey down the
side of the mountain was fully as
perilous as the ascent. Mont Pelee
seemed to resent the intrusion of q
puny human being into her most aw-
full precincts and belched out huge
volumes of steam, ashes and boiling
hot mud.
The professor made the important
discovery that the crater at the head
of the River Fallaise has s~ynchronous
eruptions with the crater at the sum-.
init of the volcano, and that it elects
precisely the same matter at such
times. The River Fallaise crater and
the crater at the summit showed dur
ing Prof. Heilprin's visit a new
phenomenon. Mud was thrown up
in high columns. Heretofore the mud
has bubbled or boiled out and flowed
downward in huge streams. In the
course of n eruption of the River
Fallaise crater an enormous mass of
intensely hot mud was elected. This
flow reached the rum distillery on the
Vive plantation, and extinguished all
the fires there. This torrent of mud
may invade the entire plantation and,
as Nive is the center of one of the
richest districts of the island, it is
feared the damage may be great.
Mr.. Clerc furnishes the following
further details of Prof. Heilprin's as
cent. The party proceeded on mules
to an altitude of 700 meters, the an.
cient line of vegetation. From this
point Prof. Heilprin continued on
foot, leaving the mule that had car
ried him up the steep hog back to the
tree line.
Upon reaching the site of Lake Pal
miste the professor found it COM
pletely dried up. He crossed the bed
of the lake and continued up on the
gently-rising slope to the crater.
Formerly the edge of the crater was
a high bluff, or shoulder. This, the
explorer found, had fallen into the
great crater, and he thinks this
change probably occurred at the time
Of the great explosion Of May 90.
This is the first important topograph.
lc alteration in Mont Pelee which has
been noted and verified.
D,Df II,t1,,,,,, nr,u.1 Il
of the summit crater at half-past one,
and remained there for over two
hours. When he returned to Vive he
resembled a statue of mud. The
weight of ashes and mud he carried
on his person, the horrible at
mosphere he breathed and the fear
full difficulties he encountered re.
duced him to a condition of extreme
fatigue, notwithstanding the fact
that he assembled Mont Pelee from
the most accessible and easiest side.
Prof. Heilprin may return to Fort
de France to-day, if he has sufficient
ly recovered by that time to do so.
George KEENAN,, and his party, who
went to Morne Rouge, found on their
return trip that a bridge across the
road had been carried away by a tor.
rent of hot mud. Negroes managed
to get the party across the obstruc-
ton. They took the carriages to
pieces and carried them and the
members of the party to the other
side of the river of mud, which was
still hot. All the members of Mr.
Remnants party are well.