Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1902-07-16
HORRORS OF PIERRE.
SCENES IN STRICKEN CITY AFTER
PELEE'S ERUPTION.
Strange Acts of the Terrible Wave
of Destruction-The suddenness of
Death Fate of Family-Dead Along
a Road.

0'rom the entrance TO the Bay Of Anse
Ia Toucto the ruins of st. Pierre lay
spread out in one long panorama, and in
the background doomed Mt. Pelee. still
belehing forth its columns of smoke,
flame, lava and ashes, writes a CORE
spondent who visited st. Pierre shortly
after the eruption of the volcano. Every
house was an absolute ruin. and as you
approached the northern end OF the city
IN the direction of the crater all build
lngs had been literally swept off tie face
of the earth. Every street was filed to
the depth of several feet with the debris
from the houses. underneath which and
underneath the ruins themselves lay all
that remained of the greater number of
the residents of St Pierre.
The once-famous Place Berth was inn
passable on account of the uprooteu
trees ind the wreckage from the vessels
lost ia the bay OF the solid stone sig
nal tower, sixty feet in height, only about
SIX feet of the base remained, together
with small portion of the circular iron
staircase inside. The streets at the
south end of the town, where many dis
tilleries were situated, were not so heap
ed with debris as those ut the north end,
but In some parts were impossible by
reason of large pools of molasses that
had leaked from the storage tanks in the
vicinity.
The road from ST. Pierre to Anse Ia
Tonche, once beautiful promenade. was
a dreadful sight. 1t was covered with a
layer OF about twelve or eighteen inches
of dust, like the surrounding country.
As you leave the town an enormous
tree lies uprooted. and underneath the
trunk were seven or eight bodies. crushed
fat. 1t appears as if the party had seen
the blast coming and endeavored to get
behind the trunk for shelter. From the
dust in the road protruded arms and legs
and whole bodies in every position. In
one instance horse and rider were kill
ed. The body of the man lay with the
right leg under the animal and the left
suspended in the air, just as the rider
must have fallen from the saddle Under
this horse could be seen parts of another
corpse besides that of the rider
Farther on, at a small wayside shrine,
was the body of a man on the steps, kill
ed in the act of prayer On a second
visit to this spot, ON May 10, many of
these bodies had become dried up by the
extreme heat, and the limbs when struck
with a stick sounded quite hard. like
wood.
In and about Anse la Touche the bodies
lay thick on the ground. The ashes here
were about five inches thick, so all corpses
were fully exposed. Every one was black
ened and bore the appearance as If it had
received coating of tar. 1t was impos
sible to tell the negro from the white
man. Sometimes shreds of hair or
piece of clothing We're seen, but usually
the bodies were quite naked.
Lying about among others were the
bodies of several children, apparently
struck down while at play. One man mad
cast himself face downward underneath
q wagonette, the remains of which and a
large buggy were standing near the resi-
dence. The bodies of the horses could
be seen in the vicinity of the small stream
which runs close by.
At another spot were a large heap of
bodies. apparently those of servants or
laborers. On the hill on the opposite side
of the stream were to be seen the bodies
of several cows and black, huddled up
heap, which, on closer inspection proved
TO be the corpse Of man doubled up.
Since May ID the authorities had been
burning the bodies in numbers. Labor
ers were employed and all exposed bodies
were saturated with Kerosene and burnt.
Where the bodies We're in the ruined
houses the ruins were fired in like man
ner. These burning bodies on every
hand formed a dreadful sight and the
smell of roasting flesh became unbear
able