Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-06-10
Brought to Geological Survey
by Prof. Hill.
WILL BE ANALYZED
TO DETERMINE NATURE OF VOL
CANIC GASES.
Probable Connection Between Carib-
bean Volcanoes and Those in Cen
trail and South America.

Scattered over the desks, tables and chairs
OF room on the second floor of the geolog-
ical survey building is a heterogeneous coll
lection Of hardware. gray dust. broken china
and small stones. Each item in this as
sortment rests on crumpled piece of yell
low paper, with few puzzles written on
its face. For two three days clerks in
the survey will be engaged in sorting and
classifying this array, putting the dust in
suitable bottles, labelling the nails and bits
of iron and marking each stone with name
of not less than six syllables.
This unusual scene is one of the results
of Professor Robert T. Hills visit to Mar
Unique a member Of the national geo.
graphic expedition. The collection of these
articles was not done with purpose of add
ing to the exhibits of any museum. A
great part of the work of the Martinique
students is yet to be done here in America,
with the help of laboratory appliances, and
Professor Hill and his associates were thus
put to the necessity of gathering samples of
volcanic dust, the pumice formations ex-
PEELED from the volcanoes and the material
substances which bear marks of the great
heat then prevailing in the vicinity of the
eIupting mountains.
Specimens in Their Socks.
To this end Professor I. C. Russell and
Professor Hill exerted themselves notably.
Space in their wardrobes aboard the trans
port Dixie was willingly sacrificed. Speci-
mems were packed away anywhere When
it was discovered there were no bags suit
able for holding the dust which the two
scientists gathered about ST. Pierre and st.
Vincent they contributed their extra socks
so that the rather monotonous collection
now in Professor Hills office is varied by
the bright touches of blue and red which
mark prevailing fashions in mems hosiery.
All the hardware picked up by Prof Hill
apparently indicates that the explosion of
Mount Pelee created an almost unbearable
neat in the city at its base. He found
cluster Of nails, for example, which had so
far melted s to have run together. Sew
eral pieces of crockery found nearby had
cracked into small pieces. 1t is certain,
say the scientists who have seen these ar
| ticles, that due to one cause or another.
| a great degree Of heat prevailed where they
were found.
Yet several articles which Prof. Hill now
has on his desks were apparently not heat
ed at all. He discovered somewhere
keno" outfit, with a score of small check
ers. each marked with a number. Not one
Of these shows any sign of heat.
Will Analyze Volcanic Dust.
The dust which has been brought to
Washington at such cost to the collectors
wearing apparel varies a little in color &C
cording to the places where 1t was collect
ed. 1t can all be called gray, however, and
it all has the same peculiar gritty touch
when pressed between the fingers. Some of
it has a decided blue tinge. like powdered
blue clay. But the greater part Of 1t is
merely a fiat gray or yellow gray and no
more Interesting specifically than so much
powdered pumice or what the druggist calls
rotten stone"
"Our great problem now" said Prof. Hill
this morning, lis to determine the nature
of the gas which sank down the city of
st. Pierre and contributed to kill the in
habtants of the city. A great deal of this
work can be done by calculation based on
conditions known to exist before the erup-
ton occurred. These stones which were
blown into the air will help when analysed.
But we expect to get the best results from
studying this dust. We shall have cross
sections made from each of these stones,
even the pieces of ordinary rock torn from
Its foundation and thrown into the air.
With the results of these analyses known
we shall possibly have made some progress
In determining the true nature Of this
gas"
Since reaching Washington Professor
Hills time has been divided between as
sorting his collection of specimen, prepar-
| Ing his lecture for the National Geographic
Society next Friday night and recuperating
| from the effects Of his overexertfon in Mar
Unique. The mere recital of his labors
about Mount Pelee is sfficient to indicate
how completely exhausted he must have
been when he boarded the Dixie for
home.
Covered a Vast Field.
ut was too big a story as you news
paper men would say, for one man to han
die. Work hard we might, Professor
Russell and l could not cover all the
ground. So / walked all about the ruined
city of St. Pierre, explored the country
Whereabouts as well as 1 could and rowed
back and forth before the coast, watching
the action of the volcano from that
perior vantage point. Professor Heprin
went to the summit, and. as We all wanted
to avoid duplicating each others work,
neither Professor Russell nor l went near
Our examination CT the conditions pre-
vailing in the caribbean sea during this
period of disturbance was made at a most
favorable time. Yet do not know that it
brings into question a single geological
theory as to these West Indian volcanoes
which was accepted by the most advanced
students before the eruption occurred.
"These islands, which stretch across the
throat Of the caribbean are really smould-
ering furnaces, with fires banked up, ever
ready to break forth at unexpected and in
opportune moments. The whole group be-
ginning with Saba on the north. near Porto
Rico, and ending with Granada on the
south, near Trinidad, is made up of an
Gent ash heaps, piled up by volcanic ac-
ton. The bases of these islands extend
beneath the water for depth as great as
their submits project above it. making
the total height of the mountain nearly
10000 feet. The Island of Martinique is
composed almost entirely of old volcanic
material and is dominated by three con-
spicuous peaks. Mount Pelee the highest
of these. is 4,42s feet in height. Mount
Corbet and Mount Vauclin are 1850 feet
and 1857 feet high, respectively.
Volcanoes are Probably Connected.
"volcanism is still an inexplicable- and
profound problem, and one of its most
singular peculiarities is the fact that it
sometimes breaks forth simultaneously in
widely distant portions Of the earth. Hecla
and Vesuvus, for example, are so connect
ed. Such sympathetic relation very prob
ably exists between all the Caribbean vol
canoes, the volcanoes of Central America
and those of southern Mexico. At the time
Of the explosion in st. Vincent-which was