The Van Buren press., 1902-08-02
WEST INDIES VOLCANOES.
Results of the Examinations by Or.
7. A. Jaggar, of Harvard, OF
Pelee and Soufriere.
AN EXTRAORDINARY SIMILARITY EXISTS.
The Products of Both NOlcnhoes
Are the same; Both characterized
by the Absence of Lava ana both
Did Their Work of Destruction
In the Same Way.
Especial Correspondence

Fort De France, Island OF MAI tlh
ique, Monday, July DIR. l. A. Jag
gar, of Harvard university, repre-
senting the United States geological
survey in the West Indies, arrived
for the second time at Fort De
France on June "a and has since VS.
tied Mont Pelee twice. He has also
made excursions to the southern
end of Martinique, and to the warm
springs of the interior Of the island
DR.. Jaggar came directly from ST.
Vincent.
An Extraordinary Similarity.
AS a result of recent examinations
of the crater of Mont Pelee and eX'
plorations of the track of the de-
vastating blast which destroyed St
Pierre, it appears that there is eN
traordinary similarity between the
cruptiOns of the Soufrere volcano
of ST. Vincent and Mont Pelee. The
products are the same, both are
characterized by the absence OF lava
and the work of destruction, both to
inanimate objects and to mankind
was accomplished in much the same
way. The destructive effects OF the
eruption in st. Vincent covered a
much more extensive area, but the
loss of human life was much less.
Active EruptiOns SubsidinG.
There has been no active eruption
of Mont Pelee of Importance since
June 6. A great cone of boVders
and volcanic bombs, heaped within
the assure from which the explosion
came, has grown in size since the
middle of May when DR.. Jaggar first
saw It. Occasionally there are sud
den slides of debris down this cone
into the deep gorge Of the Riyiere
Blanche. These slides produce great
columns of brown dust, which resem'
blcs smoke, that rise in pillows from
the mountain flank and give the i'm
preston of an eruption when viewed
from the sea. At night these sliding
Of rcdhot rocks make n glowing
streak in the mountains slope, This
accounts for the many reports by
passing vessels Of eruptions, hot lava
and dust falls, The phenomenon Is
a merely superficial one.
Merely superficial spouta.
At St. Vincent, the many mud
spouts, steam jets and local craters
that have been reported are all SUI
pcrfcial, caused by rainwatcr drain
ing into the beds OF hot, dry gravel
The two volcanoes of St. Vincent
and Martinique were in eruption in
sympathy in May Both have gradu
ally become less active since, and il
is probable that they will continue
to diminish in activity, to judge
from the present signs,
French Scientists Concur.
On this opinion the French scien
tifc commission. headed by Prof
Lacroix, of Paris, concurs, Dr.. Jag
gar Is strongly opposed, however, t.
any rehabilitation of the devastated
slopes OF the volcanoes, until the re
Spcctive governments of the islands
are willing to establish permanent
experiment stations TO protect ant
warn the inhabitants. In addition t.
his work on the islands of st. Vim
cent and Martinique, DR., Jaggar has
spent some time in Barbados collect
ing information and specimens reln
tive 10 the spread Of the dust fal
which appears TO have been mucl
greater from the Soufrierc than from
Mont pelee,