The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-05-12
IN RUINED CITY OF ST. PIERRE The Commander of the French Warship Suchet Con-
 ducts Brief Search. VOLCANO STILL HAS THREATENING ASPECT
Reports to His Government Mere Heap of Smoking Which Victims the Catastrophe Are Buried-The Vessel Unable to Reach the North ernmost Part of the Island Owing to the
 Dense Rain Ashes-Beief That
 the Disaster Surpasses All
Imagination.

| o clock on Thursday morning shower of fire rushed down on St. Pierre and
 the coast from Le Carbet (which had a population of 600O) to Le Precheur | (which had population of 4GOO), burn ing up everything in it's path.
 l Throughout Thursday the heat in the vicinity of St, Pierre was so intense and the stream of flowing lava was so un- remitting that 1t was impossible to ap- proach the town during the early part of the day As evening preached the French cruiser Suchet after a heroic | battle with the heat, suffocation and sulphur fumes, succeeded in making a dash toward the shore, nearing the land ! close enough to enable her to take off ] thirty survivors of the disaster, all of whom were horribly burned and mutil- ated.
 | St. Pierre at that time was an bso- | lute smoke waste concealing 30,000 corpses, whose rapid decomposition ne- cessltates, in some cases instantly com | pleting their cremation, which was only partially accomplished by the lava. ! The inhabitants of Fort de France were panic stricken the morning of the disaster, when the sky suddenly black ened until it was as dark as at mid- night. The sea shrank back thirty yards. hot rain began to fall while gravel the size of walnuts poured down on the town. This lasted about fifteen minutes, and then the town began to resume it's normal aspect
 The 450 survivors, who were brought here yesterday from the vicinity of St Pierre by the French cable repair ship Pouyer Guertier, came from the town of Le Precheur. where, surrounded on all sides by flowing lava, they were nearly roasted to death and expected momentarily to be engulfed.
 The work of relief Is progressing here on the most extensive scale possible, but in anticipation of disturbances the treasury building and the warehouses are guarded by troops
 The latest reports received here show that lava continues to pour down the slopes Of the mountains, slowly enRulf- ing the whole north side of the island, while fresh crevasses are continually opening.
 The latest reports received here say that the state of affairs at St. Vincent
  patches from the island of Dominica, forwarded Sunday, reported that the Soufriere volcano. in St. Vincent, was still in active operation Four small boat loads of refugees from Grand Ri- were, Martinique, have arrived at Do- minca in a ptiable condition. They report that six other boats left that vil- lage at the same time. It is not known what became of them.
 The latest news received here from St Vincent continues the correspond ent. says the number of dead there is supposed to reach 300, the majority of whom have not yet been buried.
 It Is reported that Fort De France island of Martinique, Is threatened concludes the correspondent, and there is frightful tension everywhere.
 The very slight discrepancies in the various accounts of the volcanic out break in the West Indies which have reached London leave only a shadow of hope that the later details will greatly minimize the extent of the catastrophe l and the fear is beginning to seize the may come.
 For instance, the StanQard Tn an editoral this morning says: "It Is only too clear that the area affected is larger l than known at first. If Dominica and l St. Lucia have not suffered greatly l there is reason to fear that their turn may come. nor Is it by any means cer- tain that corresponding convulsions | have not occurred or may not soon fol- | low on the mainland of Central and | South America. In the presence of | such forces man is helpless and we can | only prepare to relieve the survivors as | speedily as possible. The United States | has set us an honorable example"