The Scranton chronicle. (Scranton, Miss.) 1897-19??, 1902-05-24
DEVASTATED ST. VINCENT.
A Correspondents Visit to the VI
einity of the Volcano La
Soufriere.
EOTHING BUT An ASR-COVsRFD AREA.
Nothing Green TO He Seen in the En-
tire Northern Part of the Island
RELIEF Supplies Arriving at
kingston-Thirteen Hundred
Bodies Already buried.

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kingston-Thirteen Hundred
Bodies Already buried.
kingstown, Island of ST. Vincent
Thursday afternoon), May IA
press correspondent has just returned
here from a visit on horseback to the
devastated district of this island,
during which he Travelled so miles and
penetrated to within five miles OF the
Soufriere crater. The ash-eoyered
area of st. Vincent exceeds that of
Martinique, which the correspondent
has also explored. The most conserv-
atiye estimate of the death rate here
now places the number at loo. About
1900 bodies already have been in.
tered
Under Blanket of Ashes.
The entire northern part of the is
land is covered with ashes to an av-
erage depth of Is inches. varying
from a thin layer at Kingstown to
two feet or more at Georgetown. The
crops are ruined. nothing green can
be seen, the streets of Georgetown
are numbered with heaps of ashes re-
sembling snow drifts, and ashes rest
so heavily on the roofs that in several
cases they have caused them to fall
in. There soon will be 5000 destitute
persons in need of assistance from
the government, which is already do
ing everything possible to relieve the
sufferers. There arc n hundred in
jured people in the hospital at George
town, gangs of men are searching for
the dead or rapidly burying them in
treaches.
Relief Supplies Coming In.
The British cruiser Indefatigable
brought 25 tons of supplies here and
returned to the island of Trinidad
for more. The governor of the Wind
ward islands, Sir Robert Llewellyn, is
here supervising the work of the au-
thorities.
While the outbreak of the volcano
on the island of Martinique killed
more people outright, more territory
has been ruined in st. Vincent, hence
there is greater destitution here.
The injured persons were horribly
burned by the hot grit which was
driven along with tremendous We
loeity. Twenty-six persons who
sought refuge in a room 10 feet by
~ were all killed. One person was
Drained with huge stone nine miles
from the crater.
Hospitals Filled with the Dying.
Rough collins are being made to re-
ceive the remains of the victims.
The hospital here is filed with dying
people. Fifty injured persons are ly-
ing on the floor of that building, as
there are no beds for their accom-.
mediation, though cots are being
rapidly constructed of boards. This
and similar work has been in prog
ress since Immediately after the dis
aster. Two days elapsed, however,
before there were any burials, as the
negroes refused TO dig the necessary
trenches, though they were offered
three times the usual wages by the
local authorities. The nurses em-
ployed are incompetent, but they arc
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hard. The negroes are indifferent to
all that is transpiring and to what
has taken place. They expect to re-
ceiye government rations, but there
have been instances where they have
refused to bury their own relatives.
The Death Rate Very High.
The death rate among the people
in the hospitals is still very high, in
spite of the best medical efforts made
in their behalf. All the neighboring
British colonies are eviDcing SYM
pathy with the sufferers here. Sub
scription lists have been started and
food and clothing are being forward
ed to St. Vincent from all the British
islands.
While the entire community is
thankful for this help and sympathy
from British sources, on all sides are
heard grateful appreciation of the
prompt aid furnished by the United
States. In sanding the Potomac here
with provisions and other things for
the destitute people of st. Vincent.
The Heat is Excessive.
AS this dispatch is sent it is ex-
cessively hot here, and the northern
hills retain their foggy appearance.
The sulphuric yapors which still
exhale all over the island are in
creasing the sickness and mortality
among the surviving inhabitants and
are causing suffering among the new
arrivals. The hospital staffs are Civ
ing way to overwork and are with
difficulty bearing up.
The stencil In the afflicted dis
tricts is terrible beyond description.
Nearly all the huts left standing are
filed with dead bodies. In some
cases disinfectants and the usual
means of disposing of the dead are
useless and cremation has been re-