52 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



steam, laden with sulphur smoke were 

 rising and cracks were appearing in the 

 ground. The walls of the crater were 

 perpendicular and huge icicles 

 hung from the rim of the crater 

 formed by the condensation 

 of the steam rising from either 

 end in huge volumes. On the 

 west side of the crater every- 

 thing was covered with a 

 heavy blanket of light gray 

 ash into which we sank over 

 our boot-tops. So light was 

 this ash that it flew into the 

 air at every step. On the 

 east side the same material 

 seemed to have been thrown 

 out in the form of mud and 

 lay frozen hard as rock. 

 What little snow remained 

 near the crater was buried un- 

 der a layer of stones and 

 boulders. The larger boulders 

 had sunk down into the snow, 

 creating many treacherous 

 pits. 



The erviption of June 14 

 was the heaviest one up to 

 that date. It occurred at a 

 time when several visitors 

 were viewing the crater and 

 almost resulted fatally for one 

 of the party. There have 

 been many narrow escapes and 

 daring ascents during the sum- 

 mer, most of which will never 

 be recorded. Hundreds visited 

 the crater during July and 

 August and the fact that they 

 were taking their lives in their 

 hands seemed to have little 

 effect upon their eagerness to 

 see the hissing crater. The 

 eruptions do not seem to occur 

 with any regularity. Some 

 days there are as many as three, all 

 very violent, and then again there 

 may not be an eruption for two weeks. 

 Many of the eruptions have lasted sev- 

 eral hours and sometimes there would 

 be a series of eruptions, one following 

 another. 



Many geologists and volcanologists 

 were attracted by the violence of jVIt. 

 Lassen and paid the mountain a visit. 

 Some made several ascents. All in one 

 accord they gave their opinions that the 



old mountain was a real volcano and no 

 imitation. They predicted earthquakes 

 and they came. Some predicted that 



Photo by R. 11. Boerker. 



Beginning of the Big Eruption. 



this was the first column of ste.\-m and sulphur vapor which 

 was seen to shoot high in the air. 



the volcano would become very active 

 and actually become dangerovis. This 

 stage has almost been reached, judging 

 from the latest reports. In fact, there 

 is no reason for overlooking the possi- 

 bility of lava flow accompanied by 

 destruction of lolant and animal life. 

 Being engaged in making a map of 

 the high country around Mt. Lassen, 

 the writer made the ascent of about a 

 dozen peaks in the vicinity of the old 

 volcano and also climbed Lassen several 



