Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-05-13
WAS BOILING RED, RIVER
Saw it Strike People and Gut
Them Down.
PEOPLE RAN FROM HOUSES TO DEATH
Whole Side of the Mountain Seemed
to Open and the Fiery Stuff Rushed
Down Upon the Screaming Thou
sands-Forty Thousand Lose Lives.

St. Thomas, D. w. l., May 1O.-The
eruption of Mont Pelee, volcano ov-
erlooking the town of st. Pierre, Mar
Unique, is now reported TO have killed
over 10000 persons and the succession
of tidal waves which followed and
which destroyed all the shipping in the
harbor also wrecked five other vessels
within radius of 100 miles of the is
land.
The volcano of Soufriere in st. Vim
cent, which has been active for a week
Thursday broke into active eruption
and the town of Kingston is endanger-
ed. Reports from adjacent islands
show that the volcanic and seismic
cataclysm is spreading and it is feared
that it may attack many more of the
Islands of the Lesser Antilles.
AS far as the incomplete knowledge
of the present situation goes it appears
that fully half the island of Martinique
is under lava and ashes, that ST. Vim
cent is in great danger from Soufriere,
that supposedly extinct craters in Do
minica are becoming active and that,
several small islands have been entire
ly engulfed by the tidal waves result
ing from the fearful eruption of Mont
Pelee. 81
Native Girl Tells Story.
The only description of the scene as
viewed from the land is given by Har-
vira Da Igfrile, a native girl, who is
one of the thirty survivors of ST. Pier
re taken to Point PI!re, Island of
Guadeloupe, by the French cruiser
Suchet.
Il was going to vespers at the ca
thedral," said the girl, when mother
asked me to go up to my aunt's, who
keeps small pastry shop near the
cemetery, to deliver her a message.
I You see, is half up the mountain, just
where it turns below what we girls
used to call the 'corkscrew,' and old
crater which had a winding patti, down
which we used to lead visitors to the
island.
THE other girls did not want to go,
because they thought could not run
lip there and be down at the cathedral
n time, but hurried. When got to
he 'corkscrew' | saw some puffs of
,moke coming out of it, and only
thinking it was some 'veille' LACED ne
grol lighting fire did not go to look.
had hardly gone more than three
steps when felt hot wind from the
'corkscrew.' Thinking that something
must be on fire, ran to the top of the
path, and there saw the bottom of the
pit all red, like boiling, with little blue
flames shooting up from it, There
were two guides leading a woman UP
the path and hurrying as fast as they
could run. ] saw a puff of blue smoke
s4em to hit the party and they fell as
Ii killed.
Saw Lava Cover Party.
'Horror-stricken,I stayed a minute
or two till saw the boiling stuff creep
up the side of the 'corkscrew' until it
covered the three people who were ly-
ing there. l got frightened then and
ran down the road as fast as could
run, screaming all the way I'couldn't
see anybody on the streets and ! was
too frightened to stop and tell any.
body. think they must all have been
Mt the cathedral, as it was the vigil OF
Ascension.
"Just as l got to the main street ]
saw this boiling stuff burst from the
1op of the .corkscrew' and run down
the side of the hill 1t followed the
load first, but then, as the stream got
bigger, it eat up the houses on both
sides of the road. Then l saw that a
boiling red river was coming from an
pther part of the hill and cutting off
the escape Of the people who Were
running out of the houses.
Il ran as hard as could to the
beach and saw my brothers boat with
pail set close to the stone wharf where
he always kept it. jumped in it and
lust as did SO saw him run down
howard me. But he was too late and
| heard him scream as the stream first
touched and then swallowed him.
Dut the rope that held the boat anG
went to an old cave about quarter Of
u mile away, where we girls used tt
play pirates, but before got there
looked back and the whole side of the
mountain which was near the towr
Seemed to open and boil down on the
lscreaming thousands. / was burned
good deal by stones and ashes thai
\ came flying about the boat, but | go
Into the cave.
Tidal Wave Is Caused.
4 remember hearing an awful his.
% the boiling stuff struck the sea ant