Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1902-05-31

land OF Guadeloupe consists OF two
parts, the mountainous, containing the
great "soufrlere," or sulphur mountain
and the level tract beyond Salt river
which Is OF coraline formation The
Guadeloupe volcano has sent out smoke
and vapors within recent years and
may at any moment vomit a flood OF
lava down upon the town OF Basse
Terre, lying along the bay at Its base.
AS the prevailing winds among these
Islands are constantly from the north
east, their Atlantic coasts have few
safe harbors. all commerce being car
ried on along the 'leeward,' or Carib-
bean, shores. In the island OF Mar
Unique there is no good anchorage be-
tween the roadstead OF 81. Pierre and
the landlocked bay OF Fort-de- France,
about twelve miles distant and as there
is a vast tract Of fertile country ada
cent to the roadstead 1t was quite nat
ural that town should grow up right
where ii did, at st. Pierre. Mont
Pelee had not been in active eruption
within the memory Of man. and though
II smoked and rumbled occasionally 1t
was not considered really dangerous by
the natives Of Martinique. They con-
sidered only the natural and CONNER
clal advantages in the location Of their
town and will probably ignore the
warning that has been given them and
relocate 1t on or near the same spot
The best harbor OF Martinlques near
est island to the south, St Lucia, hap
pens to lie at its northern end as far as
any other from its smoking soufrlere.
1t is completely land inclosed, with
narrow entrance and deep water within.
and is considered the best for its size in
the West Indies. The hills above this
port OF Castries have been fortified at
great expense by the British govern
ment and the island is called a second
Gibraltar.
The bay Of Kingstown. in ST. Vincent,
lies at a distance OF about ten miles
from the soufriere which has been In
such active eruption recently as to de-
stroy all the adjacent plantations and
thousands Of lives. sending Its volcanic
lava and ashes not only all over the is
land, but over Barbados, nearly 100
miles away.
About seventy miles south OF st. Vim
cent Is the island OF Grenada, the south
ernmost OF the volcanic chain, the prln-
cipal town OF which is built upon the
brlm Of a crater invaded by the sea.
There In another crater In the interior
OF Grenada, and II II were to explode
there would be little hope OF saving any |
settlement on the island.
In glancIng over the world II will be |
seen that nearly every volcano has ell
Their a town or harbor, sometimes |
both conjolned, at or near its base, not |
only In the Lesser Antilles but In South |
America, Mexico. Italy. japan and In
our own country. Herculaneum, Pom |
pei and st. Pierre are not the only |
cities that have been destroyed by |
In the virtues of old Vul-
can, who is said by the anclents to have
held restraining power over the inte-
rior forces OF the world.
In point Of fact, II Is hardly possible
to locate town or city that can be
considered as wholly safe within the
seismic or volcanic area. The vast
forces within the earth's interior by
which water IA converted into super
heated steam and rocks are reduced TO
molten mud and incandescent sand are
beyond all human control, ililmltable In
their scope and cannot be eyaded or re-
sisted
FREDERICK A. ODER.