Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1906-04-20

tain "A correspondent to-day succeeded in
reaching the highest habitable point of
Vesuvius. where Professor Matteucci
has courageously held his post through
out the eruption. The noted scientist
was found to be calm and undisturbed
by his recent fearful experiences.
For three days Professor Matteucci
and his little band were cut off from the
outside world. Their provisions ran low
and their rations consisted of cheese,
bread and dried onions until Professor
Matteucci's urgent Geographic appeals
led venturesome guide to push through
on Friday with stock of supplies for
their relief. Meantime the Professor
had kept at his instruments, taking OBJ
servations and making calculations day
and night, while perfect inferno ragged
around him.
AS he came forward to greet the cor
respondent his blackened face and dust
covered clothes told of the ordeal through
which he had passed. He is of medium
height. stocky of build, with ruddy face
and silver gray hair and mustache. His
appearance combines the intellectually
of the savant and the hardihood of the
athlete His rough garb seemed to belle
his profession, for he looked like a
Western cowboy after hard ride in
dust storm. He wore rough tweed
jacket over a wooden shirt, which was
held together at the throat by rough
cord. A cloth cap, trousers, leggings and
heavy boots completed his costume.
The portico where he stood was knee
deep in ashes, which had to be swept
aside to make a small footway.
From the observatory terrace, to which
narrow paths had been cnt through the
ashes, the correspondent looked out over
an ocean of ashes and twisted rivers of
lava, while Vesuvius rose grimly in a
mantle of ashes and shrouded with dark
vapors, rising like gigantic fan. Pro-
fessor Matteucci was asked to tell in his
own way the story of the cataclysm from
the outset. This he readily consented to
do, and, speaking in good French, gave
the following detailed narrative
81 first observed Mount Vesuvius CIV
ing unusual signs about a month ago.
when the lava began to overflow, taking
south-westerly direction. This grad
ually increased as several small lava
streams formed into one great current"
MEETING OF LAVA STREAMS.
Real danger began about the middle
of last week. Then an enormous stream
of lava came from the summit, meeting
the other streams which burst from the
lower strata. 1t was this that over
whelmed Boscotreacase. Throughout
the lava discharge the volcano was COM
paratively quiet and without electrical
phenomena or explosions. The only ON
inous sign was the advancing wave of
lava and the cinders forming an enor.
nous cloud in the shape of pine tree
over the crater.
"Our really terrible period came al
three o'clock on Sunday morning, and
lasted until eight o'clock. The noun.
tain, which hitherto had been silent, sud.
denly gave out deafening roar and a
great rent was made in its cone. Huge
solid rocks were hurled skyward. Some
of them fell near the observatory, threat
ening to crush in the roof, but most of
them fell far outside the observatory
zone. There were no scoria in this first
discharge, but solid, bulletlike stones
which cut the roof and damaged the
windows"
Professor Matteucci employed his
hands as well as his voice in order to de-
pict the continus mass of stones rising
like bombs and Roman candles.
"At midnight of Saturday. said Pro
fessor Matteucci, II ordered the womer
and children of the household removed
This was Just before the rain of huge
stones began, and | was then left with
Professor Perret, of New York, my
American assistant, and two domestics
There was scarcely any eating, anC
all domestic order was abandoned
We snatched a few bites now anC
then; most of the time | ate righ
here" and the observer pointed to thu
remains of recent meal on the desk il
his study.
Throughout Sunday enormous soliC
blocks of stone rose to height of $3.50
feet from the crater, while ashes anC
sand were thrown much higher, but to
ward Monday the terrible shocks of earth
quake gradually diminished. One o
the worst features of the eruption wa
the unusual extent of the electrical phe
nOmena, the darkness being broken 10y
vivid flashes of lightning, giving the sky
bloodlke color, with short heavy peal
of thunder interspersed. These moment
were terrible-very terrible. Yes it wa
a veritable hell"
Asked if his scientific observations haC