The Hawaiian gazette., 1902-05-20

/ Of Martinique and speculatcS whether the
catastrophe Is due to AN eruption or an
earthquake or to both, winding up with
the statement that II IL not France alone,
but humanity as a whole that is plunged
In mourning, as such caamiti,s call up
the feeling Of solidarity uniting all who
think and feel
The Matin says IL is one Of the most
| frightful catastrophes recorded, and that
we must go back to Pompeii to find
parallel for such a calamity
ST. THOMAS. u. w. l.. May Q, 9:35 a.
m-Thc French cruiser Suchet arrived ut
Point-a-Pitrc island of Guadalupe. French
| West Indies, this morning, bringing sew
eral refugees. She confirmed the report
| that the town Of ST. Pierre. Martinique,
was entirely destroyed at s o'clock on
! Thursday morning by a volcanic eruption.
! II Is supposed that most of the nhabi-
tants of st. Pierre were killed. that the
InCighboring parishes We're laid waste and
| that the residue of the population of St
| Pierre is without food or shelter.
The commander OF the Suchct reports
that at / o'clock on Thursday the entire
town of St Pierre was wrapped in flames.
! He ondeavorod to save about thirty per-
sons. more or less burned, from the YES
sells in the harbor. His officers went
ashore in small boats. seeking survivors,
| hut We're unable to penetrate the town.
They saw heaps Of bodies upon the
wharves and 1t is believed that not
single person resident in st, Pierre at
the moment of the catastrophe escaped.
The Governor of the colony and his
staff and wife were in St Pierre and
probably persisted. The extent Of the
catastrophe cannot be imagined. The
| captain of the British steamer Roddam
was very seriously injured sand is now
| in the hospital at st. Lucia. All of his
officers and engineers were killed or dy-
ing. Nearly every member of the crew
is dead. Surgeon Campbell and ten of
| the crew OF the Roddam jumped over
board at st. Pierre and were lost.
| PARIS. May S.-The commander of the
French cruiser Suchet. now at Fort de
| France. Martinique, with all the speed
| possible and forward details of the disas-
! ter to the French Government. He can
not. however, be heard from for twenty
four hours, as the Suchet has gone to
the island of Guadalupe in order to obtain
provisions
1t is feared that NJ. Moutele Governor
Of Martinique, has persisted. He tele-
graphed May 7 that he was proceeding to
St Pierre. Senator knight is also sup
posed to have been at st. Pierre.
The British royal mail steamer Esk,
which arrived at St. Lucia this morning,
reports having passed st. Pierre last
night, The steamer was covered with
ashes though she was i've miles distant
from the town, which was In impenetra-
BILE darkness, boat was sent in as near
as possible to the shore. but not a living
soul was seen ashore, only flame.
The Quebec Steamship Company
steamer Coraima was seen to explode and
disappear.
Senator knight, who ia referred to in
the dispatch from Paris as having prob
ably been at St. Pierre at the time II the
disaster, is the president OF the General
Council. or local legislative body, of the
Island of Martinique.
KINGSTON Jamaica, May s.-All the
islands in the neighorhood of Martinique
are isolated, apparently. by an earthquake
Cable communication with ST. Vincent,
Barbaroes, Granda- Trinidad Madeira and
ST. Lucia is interrupted. Fears are en-
tertained for the safety of the cable
steamer Glappler. which was at Martin
ique prior to the disaster,
SAN JUAN, Porto Rico. May s-Ths
cable officials here have received dis
: patches from the island OF Dominica tina,
schooner which arrived there from tn,
island OF Martinique reports that over
forty thousand people are supposed &c
have persisted.