The Savannah morning news., 1902-06-08


IN making his way. Many excursion
lists always the excursionists) afoot
ana on horseback, have been obliged
iately TO turn back since clock yes
terday afternoon there has been no
communication between the customs
service of st. Pierre and Precheur.
Toward o'clock the rain of cinders
began anew"
On the evenings of Sunday and Mon
day (May 4 and 81 st. Pierre was with
out electric lights. The water power
ordinary accident. A story spread
which connected the accident with
Pelee's evil deeds, and fear went with
the story. Les Colonies answered the
expressions of fear by saying that at
mospheric conditions" caused the fail
ure of the service, and added Gin the
issue of May 81:
The eruption of Mont Pelee seems,
since this morning, to have entered in
TO period of calmness, but cinders
continue to fall in Precheur and else
where to leeward of the crater. On the
night OF May 4, $40 of a millimetre
OF cinders fell. This gives a total fall
OF mlllimetres for this city. The
quantity of .cinders which has fallen
in Precheur is centimetres, and on
the middle slope (of Mont Pelee, be-
tween st. Pierre and Precheur) from
70 to 80 centimetres (about one foot.)
Here and there in the country lack of
water is causing the people to leave.
Animals are dying of thirst and lack
of food. The branches of the trees,
overloaded with ashes, are dying. There
was display of lightning and tongues
OF IRE accompanied by thunder on
Mont Pelee last night, and the inhab-
ltants OF Fo1ds Care are leaving their
homes. CindNrs have fallen in album
dance at Macouba
Our latest information is that Ri
Were Blanche is overlooking in extra
ordinary fashion, and threatening the
Guerin factory. NJ. Guerin is loading
his furniture and otherwise preparing
to go to ST. Pierre with his family.
Latest-At five minutes before 1
o'clock the sea withdrew about 100
meters from the shore, and then rush
ed back upon the beach. The people
(of Precheur) are in a state of anx-
iety. Thousands are in frenzy running
toward the coast. Children are crying,
and women and lamenting. All shops
are being closed hastily.
"A strong wind is blowing from the
southwest, and there is general con-
sternation. The Guerin factory has
been swept over by the sea. Evident
ly this is the result of volcanic action.
We have heard that the Guerin fac
tory is destroyed, and that many have
been killed.
dry upon its pages Les Colonies pub
lished on the following day this re-
markable article:
I'VE published yesterday our special
news of the terrible catastrophe at the
Guerin factory. We make haste to say
that the action of the sea was not
caused by volcanic movement, but was
produced by the agency of a great
mass of earth which plunged into the
sea, after destroying the Guerin works.
For many days the water of Rivi-
ere Blanche had been of decidedly dark
er color. This was more marked on
Sunday, May 4, when the downflow
was extremely precipitate. BY o'clock
in the morning of that day it had be-
come a torrent. On the following
morning the situation became fear
some, but far from indicative of what
was to happen. Only certain parts of
the factory seemed to be affected by
the overflow Many curious ones and
friends of M Guerin visited the place.
M. Eugene Guerin was sad and little
nervous, and was begged to leave but
he refused. That morning MAY 81 he
and his wife and his father took break
fast at the factory, but gave orders to
the engineer of their yacht Carbet to
be prepared for any unusual event. It
had been planned in case of danger to
take refuge on the yacht and hurry to
Fort de France"
After reciting a few minor details,
that work at the factory had been sus-
pended since May on account of the
tain of ashes, Les Colonies gave this
account of the destruction of the fac
tory:
ga little after noon MAY 81 a great
mass of boiling water was precipitated
down the mountainside, ignoring the
river course, but rushing straight
downward and bounding over the OBJ
stacles it encountered. 1t engulfed
group at the factory consisting of M.
Eugene Guerin, Nine. Guerin, his wife;
M. Duquesne and the servants of the
party. 1t foundered the yacht Carbet
and another yacht, LIE Precheur, which
was riding at anchor $50 metres from
the shore.
after this terrible prologue a mass
of water bearing quantities Of earth
and rocks swept upon and leveled to a.
muddy plain the region from the build
ings of Isnard ION the Riviere Blanche)
to the sea, part of the buildings being
carried away. The plain is many hun
certain places, of fifty metres C164
feet).
IN. Guerin, it is now known, waited
at the factory to give an order. AS the
fight had been arranged and time was
of greatest value, some one on the quay
sent the engineer of the Carbet to tell
the elder Guerin to hurry aboard. 1t
is to this circumstance that the en-
gineer owes his life. When he met M q
Guerin he found him preparing to es-
cape by land rather than by sea, as his
friends implored him. Followed by the
engineer he passed through a door on
the Riviere Seche side, and just as the
party emerged the disaster occurred.
The spot they had occupied only a mo-
ment before was submerged. The fac
tory and all surrounding buildings have
now disappeared. The iron machin
cry alone stands. This was RACED
soon afterward.)
The destruction of the Guerin factory
gave the cafes in the Rue Victor Hugo,
the principal street of st. Pierre, and
a singularly picturesque one, an en-
crossing subject for conversation, be-
cause the entire street had been aroused
when the Riviere Blanche overlooked.
Every one in the Rue Victor Hugo
was in a window" Les Colonies said
in comment on May 6, land in answer
to many inquiries it was said that the
Roxelane was overlooking. Some said
it was the Riviere des Peres. The
streets of the Mouillage (the main
quarter of the city, were invaded by
a crowd-in a word. the alarm was
without reason. Somehow, near s
o'clock we heard some one call from a
window: We are prevented from sleep
ing while the volcano sleeps so sound
w that he snores.' That man surely
took philosophical view of matters"