Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-05-12
Landing Made at St. Pierre, But
Not a Living Soul
Found.
Naked and Charred Remains OF
the Dead Fill the Silent
Streets.
Soldiers Begin Work of Piline
Up Dead Bodies and Cremat-
ing Them.

| StIoSSu CITY lllS AAlO1ooaS y
catastrophe.
The streets and all the neighborhood
around what a few days ago was the
largest and most prosperous city in
Martinique were found incumbered
with heaps upon heaps of dead bodies
in all directions.
All the dead seen were stark naked.
their clothing apparently having been
burned from their bodies like so much
finder, while they themselves We're
roasted to death.
In the vast majority of instances fires
seem to have been the sole cause of
death. Great numbers of the bodies
have been burst asunder by the ter
rife heat and lie disemboweled.
In many instances the faces of the
victims are quite calm, as tho they
were stricken down instantly where
they stood, without a moments warn
mig or with hardly time to appreciate
for an instant the deadly peril they
were in. Others have stamped on their
faces an expression Of indescribablc
terror.
The entire city and the neighborhood
all about reeks with a horrible odor of
burned flesh. In one instance an entire
family of nine persons was found, all
tightly locked in each other arms,
and the bodies in a horrible state or
decomposition.
Almost the first thing done was to
make preparations. for the cremation
of the dead. Fatigue parties of soldiers
built enormous pyres of wood and
branches of trees upon which they
heaped the dead bodies by scores and
burned them as rapidly as possible.
10 facilitate the combustion n TO
as far as possible the awful
odor of burning flesh which came from
them the impromntu lcrematories were
heavily soaked with coal tar and pc
troleum.
The total number Of dead is now es-
timated at fully 10000. The disaster
itself took place within thirty seconds,
and in that half minute the vast ma
iority OF all these people were killed.
II is supposed, for there is nohody
living apparently to tell the exact facts,
that there was suddenly shot down
from the mountain a great sheet OF
| dame. accompanied by a terrible gas
ao,s whirlwind and flashes OF hghtr
Ming. precisely such as are reported as
nlaying about the summit OF La SOU
sr,ere On the Island of st. Vincent.
The entire quarters of the fort aho
of the town of lie Carbet are npie
~ leyeled to the ground. forming hoen,
mo INT. heapupon heap of covered
thioL oyer with ashes, cinoers ~
r,asas of mud and lava
What horrible revelations OF .ne
..roc wrought to human HE Wnien
.nasa grim mounds are yet TO reveal
can hardly be imagined. In these w
n,,.rtars of the city not a trace OF the
streets that existed there could pc seen.
Tbay are buried asscompletely put ot
;nht "a we're those of Pompeii.
a,nnr the water front there are a
ssans standing and the ruins of the
custom-house were found.
C~uriously enough the face ana hanus
of the clock on the hospitai were NJ
destroyed, and they furnish an IN
nortant record in the history OIL ms
terrible catastrophe. The hanas Oh
the clock had stopped at precisely ten
minutes to s, showing that 1t was AZ
that moment that the city was over
whelmed and all those thousands OIL
neople within 1t, and in Its enVlrons
were destroyed.
The work of exploring the ruins ror
the treasure buried beneath them was
going on at the same time with the IN
cineration of the dead. THE vaults OF
the Bank of Martinique We're opened
and all the securities, notes and cash
were found intact. They We're all Sc
cured and together with other treas
IRE have been brought to Fort dc
France.
AS much help as possible has been
sent to the surviving people in the vi
entity of the city. Steamers loaded
with half-crazed men, women and chill
dren from districts in the neighborhood
of ST. Pierre are constantly arriving
here.
Steamers are going back as rapidly
a possible to the scene OF the disaster
carrying with them provisions ana
clothing. The $50 people brought here
by the cable. ship Pouyer Quertier were
from the neighborhood Of the village
of LIE Prechuer. They We're entirely
h shelter when found, but none
of them was burned.
Among the families of st. Pierre
which have, entirely disappeared are
those of the governor of Martinique, in
GLIDING Mnle. Moutet, his wife; Lieu
tenant Colonel Gerbault end his wife.
Every ship In the harbor at the time
Of the disaster, with the single excep-
ton of the English steamer Roddam,
was burned with all on board lost, ex-
cepting one captain, who was saved
In relating his escape he avs that the
only wa in. which he managed to save
his life was; by repeatedly diving, He
was an expert swimmer and was able
to remain under water for a consider
able length. of time. He returned
again and agin to the surface, barely
exposing his face for a rnoment or two
to the terrific heat and thus getting
enough breath for another long dive.
Ever since the 23d of April last the
volcano Mont Pelee, which finally
wrought all the havoc, has been mani
Testing disquieting symptoms. A great
column of smoke kept mounting from
1t, and there was from time to time
showers of ashes and cinders falling
Finally, on the 9Th of May, there was
a terrific eruption, which hurled into
the air vast volumes Of mud which
completely swallowed lip the Guerir
sugar factory, which stood near the
River Blanche.