The Master of the World | Page 5

an
imperious need of knowing the true condition of the mountain. The Carolina newspapers
had flaring headlines, "The Mystery of Great Eyrie!" They asked if it was not dangerous
to dwell in such a region. Their articles aroused curiosity and fear--curiosity among those
who being in no danger themselves were interested in the disturbance merely as a strange
phenomenon of nature, fear in those who were likely to be the victims if a catastrophe
actually occurred. Those more immediately threatened were the citizens of Morganton,
and even more the good folk of Pleasant Garden and the hamlets and farms yet closer to
the mountain.
Assuredly it was regrettable that mountain climbers had not previously attempted to
ascend to the summit of the Great Eyrie. The cliffs of rock which surrounded it had never
been scaled. Perhaps they might offer no path by which even the most daring climber
could penetrate to the interior. Yet, if a volcanic eruption menaced all the western region
of the Carolinas, then a complete examination of the mountain was become absolutely
necessary.
Now before the actual ascent of the crater, with its many serious difficulties, was
attempted, there was one way which offered an opportunity of reconnoitering the interior,
with out clambering up the precipices. In the first days of September of that memorable
year, a well-known aeronaut named Wilker came to Morganton with his balloon. By
waiting for a breeze from the east, he could easily rise in his balloon and drift over the
Great Eyrie. There from a safe height above he could search with a powerful glass into its
deeps. Thus he would know if the mouth of a volcano really opened amid the mighty
rocks. This was the principal question. If this were settled, it would be known if the
surrounding country must fear an eruption at some period more or less distant.
The ascension was begun according to the programme suggested. The wind was fair and
steady; the sky clear; the morning clouds were disappearing under the vigorous rays of
the sun. If the interior of the Great Eyrie was not filled with smoke, the aeronaut would
be able to search with his glass its entire extent. If the vapors were rising, he, no doubt,
could detect their source.
The balloon rose at once to a height of fifteen hundred feet, and there rested almost
motionless for a quarter of an hour. Evidently the east wind, which was brisk upon the
Surface of the earth, did not make itself felt at that height. Then, unlucky chance, the
balloon was caught in an adverse current, and began to drift toward the east. Its distance
from the mountain chain rapidly increased. Despite all the efforts of the aeronaut, the
citizens of Morganton saw the balloon disappear on the wrong horizon. Later, they
learned that it had landed in the neighborhood of Raleigh, the capital of North Carolina.

This attempt having failed, it was agreed that it should be tried again under better
conditions. Indeed, fresh rumblings were heard from the mountain, accompanied by
heavy clouds and wavering glimmerings of light at night. Folk began to realize that the
Great Eyrie was a serious and perhaps imminent source of danger. Yes, the entire country
lay under the threat of some seismic or volcanic disaster.
During the first days of April of that year, these more or less vague apprehensions turned
to actual panic. The newspapers gave prompt echo to the public terror. The entire district
between the mountains and Morganton was sure that an eruption was at hand.
The night of the fourth of April, the good folk of Pleasant Garden were awakened by a
sudden uproar. They thought that the mountains were falling upon them. They rushed
from their houses, ready for instant flight, fearing to see open before them some immense
abyss, engulfing the farms and villages for miles around.
The night was very dark. A weight of heavy clouds pressed down upon the plain. Even
had it been day the crest of the mountains would have been invisible.
In the midst of this impenetrable obscurity, there was no response to the cries which arose
from every side. Frightened groups of men, women, and children groped their way along
the black roads in wild confusion. From every quarter came the screaming voices: "It is
an earthquake!" "It is an eruption!" "Whence comes it?" "From the Great Eyrie!"
Into Morganton sped the news that stones, lava, ashes, were raining down upon the
country.
Shrewd citizens of the town, however, observed that if there were an eruption the noise
would have continued and increased, the flames would have appeared above the crater; or
at least their lurid reflections would have penetrated the clouds. Now, even these
reflections were no longer seen. If there had