Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1906-05-02

aged by a great earthquake, but it was
in 70 Vesuvius buried them deep away
from the eyes OF man, burial that
was to last five centuries more than a
thousand years. Herculaneum lay d.
rectly at the foot of Vesuvius, Pom
peii a little beyond. Pompeii had be-
come resort of wealthy Romans,
place Of considerable trade, port town
for the inland cities in the rich valley
OF the Sarnus. Stabiae was water
ing place a few miles south of Pompeii.
Herculaneum as shown by rich works
OF art uncovered in modern times, was
favored by Romans of wealth and cul
ture. Life was proceeding on it's &C.
customed round in the three towns on
the morning of August "a, 70, when
down swept, without warning, desola-
ton and darkness. But let us to that
book which fascinated our youth, let
us to the story-teller's picture of THE
Last Days of Pompeii." You remem
Der the people were gathered in the
amphitheater, the excited mob rush
ing down on the Egyptian, when the
latter, making use of his craft in hour
of deadly peril, cried out: "Behold, the
fires Of the avenging Orcus burst
forth!'
The eyes of the crowd followed the
gesture Of the Egyptian, and beheld
with ineffable dismay vast vapor
shooting from Vesuvius, in the form OF
a gigantic pine tree; the trunk, black
ness-the branches, f1re-a fire that
shifted and wavered in its hues with
every moment, now tiercely luminous,
now of a dull and dying red, that
again blazed terrifcally forth with in
tolerable glare.
There was a dead, neart-sunken
silence-through which there suddenly
broke the roar of the lion, which was
echoed back from within the building
by the sharper and fiercer: yells of it's
fellow-beast. Dread seers were they
of the Burden of the Atmosphere, and
wild prophets of the wrath to come!
Then there arose on high the uni
versal shrieks of women; the men
stared at each other, but were dumb.
At that moment they felt the earth
shake beneath their feet; the walls of
the theater trembled and, beyond in
the distance, they heard the crash of
falling roofs; an instant more and the
mountain cloud seemed to roll towards
them, dark and rapid, like torrent;
at the same. time it cast forth from it's
bosom a shower of ashes mixed with
vast fragments of burning stone! Over
the crushing vines-over the desolate
streets-over the amphitheater ITSELF
far and wide-with many a mighty
splash in the agitated sea-fell that
awful shower!
mo longer thought the crowd of
justice or Of Arbaces; safety for them
selves was their sole thought. Each
turned to fly-each dashing, pressing,
crushing against each other. Tramp
ling recklessly over the fallen-amidst
groaLs, and oaths, and prayers, and
sudden shrieks, the enormous crowd
vom!ted itself forth through the nu.
merous passages. Whittier should they
tiy7 Some, anticipating second
earthquake, fastened to their homes to
lO&0 themselves with their most costly
goods, and escape while it was yet
time; others, dreading the shower of
ashes that now fell fast, torrent upon
torrent, over the streets, rushed under
tine roofs OF the nearest houses, or tenn
pies, or sheds-shelter of any kind
for protection from the torrents. Of the
open air. But darker, and larger, and
mightier, spread the cloud above them.
1t was a sudden and more CHASTITY
Night rushing upon ID the realm OF:
Noon" >..,. ~: .s:3>& j Il: ts5.s: >.%
In this eruption from VesuSius no