dows. All this
time the mountain was roaring and shaking, and in the intervals between
these terrifying sounds I could hear the cries of despair and agony from
the thousands who were perishing. These cries added to the terror of
the scene, but it is impossible to describe its horror or the dreadful
sensations it produced. It was like witnessing the end of the world.

"Let me add that, after the first shock was over, the survivors of
the crew rendered willing help to navigate the ship to this port. Mr.
Plissoneau, our agent in Martinique, happening to be on board, was
saved, and I really believe that he is the only survivor of St. Pierre.
As it is, he is seriously burned on the hands and face.

"FREEMAN,

"Master British Steamship Roddam."

THE "ETONA" PASSES ST. PIERRE

The British steamer Etona, of the Norton Line, stopped at St. Lucia to
coal on May 10th. Captain Cantell there visited the Roddam and had an
interview with Captain Freeman. On the 11th the Elona put to sea again,
passing St. Pierre in the afternoon. We subjoin her captain's story:

"The weather was clear and we had a fine view, but the old outlines of
St. Pierre were not recognizable. Everything was a mass of blue lava,
and the formation of the land itself seemed to have changed. When we
were about eight miles off the northern end of the island Mount Pelee
began to belch a second time. Clouds of smoke and lava shot into the
air and spread over all the sea, darkening the sun. Our decks in a
few minutes were covered with a substance that looked like sand dyed a
bluish tint, and which smelled like phosphorus. For all that the day was
clear, there was little to be seen satisfactorily. Over the island there
hung a blue haze. It seemed to me that the formation, the topography, of
the island was altered.

"Everything seemed to be covered with a blue dust, such as had fallen
aboard us every day since we had been within the affected region. It
was blue lava dust. For more than an hour we scanned the coast with our
glasses, now and then discovering something that looked like a ruined
hamlet or collection of buildings. There was no life visible. Suddenly
we realized that we might have to fight for our lives as the Roddam's
people had done.

"We were about four miles off the northern end of the island when
suddenly there shot up in the air to a tremendous height a column of
smoke. The sky darkened and the smoke seemed to swirl down upon us. In
fact, it