The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1906-10-31
A RARE SIGHT
From the Deck OF a Steam Ship
in Mid Ocean.
SAW AN ISLAND BORN'

States Ste Gamer AsDatross oua'
denly Behold Red Hot Noun.
tain Rise Out of The
Ocean.
Lieutenant Hepburn, Of tho United
States Navy, navigating officer OF tho
United States steamship Albatross,
has Just had the extraordinary e1.
perience OF witnessing tho birth OF q
nsw island, says the New York Amer
icar.
The Albatross. which is constantly
employed In making discoveries In the
deep seas, was csuising OF the Aleu-
tian Islands. whi3h stretch out west
ward from Alaska, forming the division
between Behring Sea and ate Pacific
Ocean. She was in latitude 80 so
north ard longitude ]68 west when
the astounding phenoM euon occurred.
This spot lies bout fifty miles north
west OF Una,aska Island and near the
Bcgu7lay lands, which are OF vol.
csnic origin.
Lieutenant Hepburn was on deck
shortly after sunrise, wiier his atten.
tion was attractsd by an extrsordi.
rsry disturbance of tho waters. The
surface of tho ocean a. particular
SPOT rose into . domelike swelling as
largo IS the dome of the Capitol at
Washington, then subsidized and then
rose again. Before eson sub3idence
there was tremendous escape OF gas,
like . huge bubble pushing its way
through the water.
Then the dome.like formation
cesased, and new and more terrific
disturbances riveted the attention OF
the astourded watcher. Great clouds
of smoke and steam issued from the
surface, where tho bumps had been.
AS he watched, the eruption rapidly
grew in immensity until 1t seemed IS
II it would involve the whole OF the
ocean and the sky.
The ocean boiled up ss If 1t weTe
lying in sn inmeasurable furnace. A
vast column of steam, smoke, fire,
rocks and other materials shot from
the ocean up into the sky 30 high
that the top Of 1t could not be dis.
cernsd. The column was probably
three miles in width. 1t was an In
describably terrifying spectacle. All
the officers and men of the Albatross
came tumbling on deck to see 1t.
Within the smoke and other
material could be discerued vast
column of fame which rose up into
the sky with roaring noise. Huge
boulders shot up In the flames with
q report louder than that OF all the
12.inch guns on the biggest battle.
ship firing at once. The heat scorched
thuse on the Albatross and must have
been perceptible for fifty miles
around. Tie entire ocean vas heat.
cd.
The column of smoke and fire
changed In color. It was red, yellow,
blus and dark brown by turns. The
molten matter thrown up into the
sky came down again In . partially
cooled condition and fell into the
ocean with continuous sizzling sno
q Nigh y splsshing, sending forth
constantly concentric hot waves OF
water which rocked the Albatross
violently. Ashes were scattered by
the fiery pillar and fell on the ocean
for miles around. Doubtless they
were being carried round tho world,
as has been happened in other vol,
can1c eruptions.
Tee spectacle which Lieutenant
Hepburn and the crew OF the Alba
tross were witnessing WAS the erup-
tion Of q submarine volcano. Some.
where beneath the ocean bed an i'm.
mense mass of burning matter had
gathered such force that it's expan.
sion was great enough to bust through
the crust Of the earth even when
weighted down by the ocean above it.
Wten the fiery mass met the ocean
the water was Immediately converted
into steam. Thus there was formed
q column of burning earth and ex-
plosive gases leading from the ocean
bed away up past the surface into
tho sky. 1t was an infinitely more
terrible eruption on account of the
mixture of water than would have
occurred from q volcano whose crater
was exposed to the upper air.
After an hour or 80 the watchers
saw dark brown solid mass of IRE.
gular shape forming upon the water
at the base Of the fiery column. That
was the birth Of the island. The
lava and burning earth had complete
ly filed up the ocean from it's bod
hundreds of fsthoms down, to the
surface, and was now rising above the
surface. Higher and higher it mount
ed, while flame, smoke aud molten
matter continually belched forth from
its centre, which was volcanic
crater. Tho matter flowed out on
all sides and gradually increased the
size OF tho island. Tho summit of
the vslcsno appeared to be climbing
up into the sky. II has since been
estimated to have reached height OF
1000 feet.
To the great disappointment OF
many Of the officers and crew of the
Albatross, the captain decided thsS
it was impossible to attempt to land
on the new. born island or to 90 any
nearer to 1t. He knew from bis