The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-11-14
IN THE SHADOW or VESUVlUS

Warned bv many previous occur
reuces I was prepared for whatever
might happen; indeed. / rather looked
forward TO something out of the or
dinary. Nor was ] disappointed.
We were IN Rome when the news
came 10 US of the Mont Pelee erup
ton in the West Indies, To mind
os directly organized az that Of Bar
ton CortIce it NAV he possible that
the seismic conditions then preNa-
lent throughout the earthquake belt
were peculiarly provocative OF excite
ment. / need not enter into details
merely recording the fact that. for
several days he was cXcitable, aud, as
we Americans say, son edge
Consequently | was not surprised
one morning TO hear him say:
''Do you mind il VIC make quick
moye?'''
II m at your services. my dear fell
low ] answered. lone place iu Italy
is rs good as the next to ne. Ny
paper viii print my letters from ono
spot as well as another
EThat's fine he exclaimed. -
want to go to Naples. You We seen
the papers. suppose-all about toe
Martiniaue disaster! Well 10 bc
frank with yon ] want TO get into the
earthquake Zoue.'
One would have supposed that any
normally sane man or woman would
have been prompted to keep away. but
you must remember that while Cor
tice was sane. he was certainly super
normal.
"Whcrever you choose I said, non
chalantly. .'Whcrc do. VIC go?'
''To Naples he answered, and
! III tell YOU why when We get there.
But no-that 5 hardly fair to so loyo.
comrade I'll be frank, and say
that for months past, ever since the
| Bolsena incident, 'vc wanted TO prove
up something connected with Nesuvlus
year 70. when two fair cities were
enqulfed aud-I lost my life!
Now ] leave il TO my safe and sane
twentieth century American If that was
not a streak of startling talk-to hear
a man living speak unconccrnedly OF
the time when he lost his life But
then. of course. I was used 10 the va.
carries of Barton Corticc. So | mere
| " remarked, as matter OF course:
Sevcuty.nine2 Why, WASH t that
the year when Pompeil and Hercula-
ncum were deStr0yed?'
/ Precisely" was the rcloindcr.
"This West Indian business seems TO
have brought thc whole horrld scene
| back 70 me again.
/ ',Thcn, it | am not mistaken. you
! were at that time Roman soldier,
and Nero had not been dead more than
few wears.
"Richt again. he exclaimed, dc
! lighted that ! should have followed him
| so closely. FThcrc g Il certain polni
/ want TO verify But III tell You
the whole story when we are on the
scene.
/ should have liked to question him
further then and there, but he shut
up tight as a clam.
Nothing would serve but that we
must follow the old Roman road from!
Rome to Naples, travelling by horses
aud carriage rather than by train. III
order that Barton might point ont to
nc the route taken by many of The
fugitives nearly 900 years ago. Luck
: ilv the journey was short, for ] doubt
If there is Il decent horse and car
riagc m the whole of Italy.
We arrived at Naples about sunset
and certainly my first view Of the sweep
of the immortal bay from the heights
was all that one could ask-Onc that
could not he secured on q first up.
proach by train.
Owing perhaps TO sympathy with lis
West Indian brother. Ncsuvius that yeaI
was decidedly uneasy. \ great pillar
Of smoke arose from the volcanic cone
mushrooming ont by day, and at night
rejecting tho hidden fires far down in
the bowels of the crater, The people
were rather uneasy; those living OF
th slopes and at the famous observa
tory reporting steady rumblings auC
tremblings. But there WAS nothing
portcnding any grave disaster, Doubt
less the Ti'ans at work within th,
womb of Mother Earth bad expended
their worst energies elsewhere for th'
time being
Next morning, without loss of time
we crossed the hay where lIcrculaueuu
and Pompcii stood Of old ere they were
cuguIted by the delugc Of mud, Law;