The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-05-26
THE STORY
SUMMARY OF THE MARTINIQUE
DISASTER.
Description of the Cataclasm and Its
Threatened Outbreak Gathered From
Various Eye Witnesses.

he lSldnu OF Martinique, the com
mercial capital of which, st. Pierre
has been to all intents and purposes
destroyed with all its inhabitants by
an outbreak of Mt. Pelee, a volcano in
close proximity to the town, is an ISL
and of the West Indies, discovered by
the Spaniards in 1893. 1t was colonized
! by the french in 1886 and seized by the
! British in 1862, 1881, 1894 and 1909. The
! treaty OF Paris in 1914 restored it to the
French government Josephine, Ia
belle creole" wife of the Emperor Ma
| poleon, was born at Fort de France,
the secondary city of the island now
crowded with refugees from the vici-
nifty of the still active volcano. Her
statue occupyies a prominent position
in the botanical gardens at Fort de
France.
! Mount Pelee, situated about ten miles
north of St Pierre gave indications
some fifty years since of an eruuti IN
| which resulted in nothing worse than
temporary alarm. On April % last the
! first signs of impending danger mani
Tested themselves on Martinique.
Earthquake shocks, mutterings and
smoke bursts from the mountain We're
roted but little heed except by the low
er animals whose instinct aided them
where higher nIentalities thought all
DeIOre
final devastation birds ceased their
songs, the smaller animals, quadrupcd
insect and reptile deserted their haunts
while the domestic animals restrained
by their owners showed their constant
and increasing terror and fled to quiet
ef and safer portions of the island At
their first chance.
On May distinct warning in the
shape of a dense, ominous cloud 1f
smoke appeared over Pelees crest,
turning into pillar of fire by night. At
midnight flames lit up the sky over an
immense area, the reflection mounting
to the zenith Rumbling noises issued
apparently from the very hea.- of the
mountain and terror reigned. Sunday
May 4, was spent in prayerful supplica-
ton in the churches, but as if fascinat-
ed the inhabitants still clung to the
fated city.
Eyes looking towards Pelee saw moth
ing through the veil of ashes that fell
all over the city covering streets and
buildings an inch deep with their fu-
nereal suggestion. Quiet reiGned in
the whole city and the people ventured
out only to go to the churches or creep
TO neighbors there to discuss the por-
tents in awestruck whispers.
Monday at noon the throat of the
rushed over the top of the crater and
turned the dry bed of a mountain tor
rent into a river of burning lava that
reached the sea, five miles from the
mountain in three minutes. The Guer-
iii Sugar works situated on the brink
OF the torrent bed, called la Riviere
Blanche, was destroyed with twenty
three working men and the son of the
proprietor. The factory was situated
about two miles north of st. Pierre.
This caused a UNIVERSAL panic, people
filling the streets, terror struck. A
commission was appointed by Governor
Mouttet to investigate the outbreak
and meanwhile the governor, fearing
panic, issued OIders to prevent a gen
eral exodus placing a Gordon of po-
lice and soldiers around the town t. en-
force his action. For this he has since
been severely criticized by relatives
and friends of those who perish ed. The
commission returned May at even
ing with reassuring news and St. Pierre
appeared to regain its regular busI--
ness conditions. Following the first
lava flow the sea receded 3 considera-
bic distance along the western coast,
estimated variously at from one to
three hundred feet and returned with
some violence but doing little damage.
On Thursday, May s, at ten minutes
to eight, as fixed by the hospital clock,
still existent though st)ppel, an en-
Velope of fire surrounded the doomed
city. Seen from the sea and land it
has been variOusly described as "a
tremendous cloud of smoke and glowing
cinders raining fire on land and sea
and enwrapping the town" as a "whirl-
wind of fire" and as a gaseous, fiery
breath followed instantaneously by
showers of ashes" The bright light
Cr early morning was obscured,
fiery cinders ralned upon the city
and the shipping starting fires 81
multaneously everywhere. Molten rock
crashed through the buildings and de-
stroyed every vessel in the harbor save
one, the British steamer ROddam,
which with captain and crew badly
burned and many men incinerated
crawled into Castries harbor the same
afternoon, bringing corroboration of
the catastrophe. Nearly all the popu-
lace apparently perished in the first
burst of flame that scorched the clothes
from their writhing forms AMI charred
the corpses beyond recognition. Most
of the dead have been found face
downward as if killed while running
Tor refuge. Hospitals, colleges, con-
vents and prisons were turned into vast
tins were caught instantaneously as
their post mortem attitudes show. Be
yond moment or two of blind terror.
the sufferings were not prolonged. A
few were observed running up and
down the waterfront with improvised
shields endeavoring to ward off the
merry rain. Others perished in the bill
ing waters of the harbOr What few
survivors we've left perished in the big
gest eruption from the crater, 4 stream
OF lava flowing at forty miles an hour
hlling the gorges and water courses.
The clouds of cinders fell with dimin-
ished volume and heat on, Fort &c
France and give them an inking of
what must have happened at ST. Pier
re. No great number of fatalities were
there. The French cruiser
Suchet steamed for St. Pierre and after
heroic efforts dashed through the fiery |
Gordon and succeeded in sending a |
small boat ashore. One negro woman, |
afterwards perishing from her wounds |
tcOntinusd on page avS)