The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1916-02-24

when the tremendous and historic out
burst occurred on May %, 1915.
Some of the daring mountaineers set
out with lines to measure these stones
shortly after the eruption. They found
two great rocks, one 12 by IA by IL
feet and the other II by 8 by II feet
both still so hot that they blistered
their hands in measuring them. An.
other great rock which was vomited
forth set fire to green sapIing against
which it rested.
1t was on the northern slope of the
| mountain that the great disaster of
Hat creek occurred. There was a deep
snowbank near the summit and the
fierce heat of the explosion together
with great mass Of hot cinders rapid
ly melted the snow, and the water
mixed with the ashes and the sand to
muddy consistency rushed down the
mountainside in an irresistible torrent,
covering portions of the valley for a
width of two miles with mud from one
to two feet deep.
UpheavaI That Made Lassen.
There was time in remote
geological ages when Lassen peak did
not exist, when the waves of the Pa
cific ocean rolled over the broad ex-
panse of what is now Sacramento val
ley and washed the shores of a CONT
nent which terminated at the base of
the Sierra Nevada mountains. Then
began a wonderful upheaval of the
earth's crust attended with a tre-
mendous display of subterranean
energy and the most brilliant series of
thermal, explosive and volcanic out.
bursts the world has ever known.
This was when the giant volcanoes
of Lassen and Shasta and the noun.
tains of the Cascade range were born.
The foundations of the great deep were
broken up. During the uplifting of
basic rock by stupendous subterranean
forces they were metamorphosed by
the intense heat and veins and dikes
were filled with the melted rock from
below.
In the imaginative language of an
early writer: The funeral day of the
old world had come. 1t must be buried.
The momentous event was ushered in
by one of the grandest displays of
terrestrial fireworks earth ever wit.
messed. But there were no human spec.
tators All the pageantry and pomp of
earth and heaven were presented on
a scale of magnifcence never since
equaled. The roar of heavens artfl-
lery was drowned in the more terrible
crash of breaking and heaving noun.
tains; the sun was quenched by the
fiercer CLEANS of red flames that shot
from hundred volcanoes; along half
a thousand miles, from the foundations
of Lassen and Shasta to those of Hood
and Rainier, the earth was opened in
widegaping chasms and tremendous
floods of surging. burning, liquid lavas
were poured out; and black, suffocat-
ing showers of ashes and volcanic dust
were shot high in air and carried far
out over the ocean, now Swallowed by
the terrific upheavals."
The area that was affected by this
great turning over of nature in her
sleep is of immense extent. 1t in
cludes parts of California, Nevada,
most of Oregon and large part of
Since the first outburst of the Las
sen volcano there have been to date
several hundred other eruptions carry
ing gray ash and fine, dry powder and
rock and rounded lava
powders, but at no time has there
been any flowing melted lava. Yet
every explosion, every discharge of
ashes and projectiIes is accompanied
by powerful jets of steam and vapor
and roar like the firing of some mon
ster gun. 1t gives no signs of letting
up.