The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-05-12
THIS MAN SAW IT COAL STRIKE IS ON
Story of First Officer Scott of the
/ Roraima.
LOOKED LIKE WORLDS END
A Great Pillar of Flame Leaps Into
the Air Like IL Mighty Dyna-
mite Explosion.
Special to The Journal.

Special to The Journal.
New York, May 12.-The Herald has
from Dominica. B. w. l., the story of Ell
lery ]. Scott, first officer of the Roraima,
who saw the whole eruption and narrowly
escaped death. He says:
1T was about daylight on the morning
Of May when we sighted the island. We
had run through a thunder storm, and
when we arose, Captain Muggah pointed
to the volcano and said: Scott, do not
like the looks of the old fellow this morn
ing r
There were smoke clouds, or steam
clouds, over the peak, but knew the cap
tain was always prophesying bad things
about the mountain, SO l said: I guess
it's all right. captain ..
Anyway we steamed ahead for St.
Pierre, and at o'clock were at our an
chorage Off the place. ~,
There We're about eighteen other
st Gamers and coasting craft anchored, like
us, in the open harbor,t one of them being
the Tamaya, bark from the French port
Nantes, her captain being called Moritz,
or Maurice. There were four other
large sailing vessels, and just as we had
fairly got the stevedores jumping, the
British steamer Roddam put into the berth
next to ours, and let drop her anchor.
Then something happened. There was.
first, a rafting sound or feeling, I don't
know which; but as the Roddam's chain
was running out, and our winches were
| clanking, thought for a second the rat
tie might be from them
Then came a shaking in the air, so
that I felt as though some one had JOS
! tied me. Some man near me cried out:
My God, look at that!
He was gazing at Pelee, and every soul
on beard looked, too.
Il can't describe what l saw, of course,
but my first thought was that the end Of
the world, would look just like that. 1t
| was just as though the mountain had been
blown up by all the dynamite in the
| world ...-....1 -.
First of all, a great pillar of flame
rushed straight up in the air Then 1t
opened out wider than the mountain it
self, and came roaring down out of the
sky upon us. l wonder 1 did not go crazy.
Il remember. now, noticing that, as
the head Of the thing came on, it twisted
t and Whirled like a Waterspout, and that
out of it dropped blotches and streaks Of
fire, and that, as it whirled and twisted
| it got bigger all the time.
| Il remember, too, now, that beside the
great, spreading clouds of fire, there were
| streams of lava left behind that ran and
wiggled down the mountain side.
Next came the roar-not like thunder
but like everything in the world going to
pieces. -...- -
THAT roar seemed to bring us to ou1
senses. Some of us, with Merely, the
second officer, rushed to the forecastle
head to heave the anchor. I saw the cap
tain shouting orders, and 1 saw McFear
the engineer drop below. AS we reached
the ships head, the fiery cloud was upor
us. Red hot stones, scalding mud and
real splashes of flame dropped and clat;
tered all over the ship, while the air wa!
full of sulphur reek that choked us. :,
Then a new thing happened There wa!
another roar, and with it all the water il
the harbor seemed to gather up and rusi
upon the shipping. .-<.
| Every craft heeled over to the grea
| tidal wave and seemed t o careen and sink
When the wave struck us, it flooded u!
fore and aft, sweeping away the masts
the funnel and the boats, save one, ant
all the rattle of the dock
There was ventilator at hand ant
to save myself seized it and was nearl,
. killed thereby, being driven into it b
the force of the oncoming waves.
ga couple, of stevedores pulled me GU
of the ventilator and dragged me into tn
steerage. There I remained, half dead
for quite a time, during which the shi
rolled and the fire and rocks battered tn
decks.
"Now and then a charred sailor role
down the hatchway and died as he came, $
that quite pile of corpses lay over me.
Some one pulled me from under thes
and l clambered to the deck, and bega
,urning hand toward saving the injure
who were lying all about, though eve
hen. small, red hot stones and mud wer
falling.
GAS l was about this work, Capital
Muggah came along. l knew him by hi
| Clothes though they were smoldering, by
| his face was scorched beyond recogn
| ton.
Lower the boat he said, and let
| try to get out of this hell
i Il could not obey orders, however, fe
\ the boat that was left by the tidal way
h was burned full of holes by the f1amir
|! rain. l saw no more Of the captain afte
Il that, but l was told by a stevedore of S
n kits that he jumped overheard and &,
h on raft that had hurriedly been put tt
= gether and that he died there.
. 'All this time the sea was rolling lii
the heaviest kind of ground swell. Pelt
!. was roaring and the air was full
i strange shocks.
: when l looked to st. Pierre, the sigl
s was SO terrifying that freely confess
made me cry. The town was gone and
it's place was long stretch of gray, smol
ing, flaming dust.
: pray God 1 never see anything like
: again. Indeed, 1 do not think I cou
3 and live. ~...
Some hours afterward, I didn't kno
: what hour it was, but I've since been to
5 it was at 3 o'clock in the afternoon-t1
: French cruiser Suchet steamed in and re
g cued seventeen Of us, more dead tn,
alive. We were carried to Fort de Fran
Z and put in the hospital
9 Change in Ellsworth and River Fal
Z Trains via the Omaha.
9 Commencing Monday 18th inst trai