The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-05-11
THE MARTINIQUE DISASTER.

IT IS DIFFICULT, almost impossible.
4 for the human mind to grasp the
fuH horror Of the Martinique disaster.
within three minutes 10000 lives were
snufged out and a sun-kissed island in
a summer sea transformed into a char
mel house such as the world has never
seen. There was no time to escape
from the rain Of fire, the fast-fowing
rivers OF molten lava. The fun story Of
the fearful horror win perhaps never
be known. OF the homes destroyed,
the frantic, useless struggles to save
the lives of loved ones from the he'll
that encompassed the fated city Of St.
Pierre and the surrounding country. no
pen can give a faithful account.
To the French republic. bowed with
the weight of this overwhelming ca
lamity. win 90 the sympathy Of all
nations and all peoples. In the face Of
such desolation no words can convey
a 1.-THE Of comfort. The God who Wis
tied the agony upon the island Of Mar
Unique and the French nation can alone
repair the wound. No human care or
forethought could have prevented this
tragedy Of tragedies. no mortal agency
could have stayed the downpour of the
fire or damned the white-hot tide that
flowed through the streets of st. Pierre.
Men are won't 70 talk somewhat
boastfully about their victories over
the forces OF nature. They open viii
dernesses to civilization, they clear
away poisonous jungles. they brave
equatorial heat and eternal ice, they
transform deserts into gardens, they
harness great water courses and drive
them like well-trained steeds. But
there are commissions Of nature which
make all the efforts of man seem weak
and puny and futile. Perhaps this is
the lesson of the Martinique disaster,
a lesson which teaches every one Of us
that there is a power no man can COM
pass, a force which only the Creator
can control
The island Of Martinique was pecul-
iarly fitted BY nature for what has
come about. With only forty-three
miles Of length and an average width
OF nineteen miles, it has two clusters
Of volcanic mountains, one in the north.
the other in the south. A line Of lower
heights between them forms the back
bone Of the island. eliminating in the
northwest in Mont Pelee. 1t was Mont
Pelee that did the damage, but Of that,
later Those who have seen Martinique
pronounce it one OF che most beautiful
ISL de In frr n~n
square miles. or a little more than 244.-
600 acres.
A considerable proportion Of this has
long been under cultivation. Sugar.
coffee, cotton and cocoa are the prin-
cipal exports. There has never been
a lack of water in the island. for nu-
merous streams traverse IL, and, in the
rainy seasons, have been known to
overflow and cause considerable dam
age The east coast. exposed to the
sweep Of the Atlantic, is dotted with
coves, inlets and rocks. The south
coast is rocky but much more regular.
and the west presents a great stretch
Of mangrove swamps. The interior OF
the island contains the richest kind Of
soil, and the growth Of all vegetation
is luxuriant
The cause Of the eruption is said by
a Lendon scientist to have been the
effort Of steam to escape from Mont
Pelee- As has long been known. the
interior Of Mont Pelee is molten lava.
1t is thought that a stream Of water
came IN contact with it and the pres
sure Of steam that resulted blew of
the top Of the mountain and turned
loose a hell on earth.