The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1853-04-21
Great Earthquake In the Indian Arc chipe.

bruary last, quotes from the Java Bode, the
| following account OF terrible commotion ol
nature, which commenced on the 10th, or pro.
badly the 26th of November, and lasted until
the 22d Of December last.
'On the 10th OF November, about 90 minutes
10 o CLOCK IN the morning, heavy vertical
| oscillation OF the ground was felt at Banda
Nero, which soon changed into rapidly in.
creaslng undulation from the N. E. to the s. E.,
which lasted tor more than FIVE minutes. Eve.
| ~ one leit his house; to remain standing was
| impossible; people were obliged to take firm
hold OF something, or throw themselves on the
ground. In the morning a slight shower of
rain fell, but otherwise the weather was not
| unfavorable
"At the first shock, nearly all the houses
were thrown down, or very much shattered.-
The government buildings, the church, the Of
| hcers' houses in the encampmenf, and the
warehouses suffered the greatest injury; the
chinese quarter was heap of ruins-the ma.
tive village on the Ronnegat was laid wasie.-
The Papenburg fell partly in, and two BAN.
boo houses upon ii disappeared; and on Great
Banda The houses of the park keepers, their
| out houses,on smoking houses for the nulmegs
underwent the same faIe; everything there
was also thrown down, or greatly injured; no.
thing is visible of the village Lonlhoir but a
| heop Of ruins. Saru was terribly shattered,
scattered around. There were no deaths, how
ever, to lameat, and only some persons were
| slightly bruised or wounded.
But the misfortune did not stop here. About
eight o'clock a disturbance of the sea (zee &.
bering) occurred, which filled every heart with
tear and dismay, and caused every one to Fly
to the highest ground. In quick succession
the bay fed and emptied, and at times appear.
ed TO be only little narrow river.
| THE shp Atiat al RI Rachrnap laden with rice lv.
ing in the roads, twice touched the ground, after
| like His Majesty's brig De Baai, which had an.
| chored the day previous-haviDg been driven back
| wards and forwards number of times but this
seaquake increased Ia frigh,ful manner, and
| thrice overwhelmed Great Banda and Neira with
the largest rollers; the last place they resched
several feet high in the houses and burst the doors
open. These huge waves formed In the Zonnegat
| and in the channel Of Lanthoir, and ran so high
that they beat over Fort Nassau. and reached the
foot OF The hill on which Fort Belgica s built
rying everything with them in their refux. but at
| the same time leaving behind them a quantity Of
fishes. The prahus in the roads wore driven
| among and against each other, and carried to and
from the Shore They foundered, or drove In the
| Lonnegat where they struck on the shore only 4
| few could save themselves by flight. These prahus
belonged to the Saru and Key Islands and Csrsm,
| and part of their crews finding themselves on
shore sought shelter in one of the sheds on the old
pisr but they could not Withstand the force of the
| rollers, and in moment they we're torpSout Of
their place of shelter and driven seawsros, there
miserably to perish. IL s estimated that sixty men
| lost their lives in this way.
| miserable was the condition of the Inhabitants
who saw the waves, 20 feet high, rolling irresis-
nbly towards .hem threatening to engulf them; the
| ground continually rocking under their feet yhe
| atmosphere echoing with loud reports like cannon
shots, filing their hearts with fear; and this all de-
structiVe lndescrbabie state CT things, lasted not
| merely for tive minutes-an hour-a day-but for
successive days; for these frightfu natural pheno.
msna only ceased on the 22d of December, while
all that time scarcely an hour passed that the ground
| did not hekve ana shake, now in the heaviest man
ner. and then lighter, but ways that ostrus taba
fear in the hearts of the inhabl-
tants who, partly Or wholly ruined without nabita
tons sheltering in little bamboo hus, looked for.
ward to the gloomiest future, and viii perhaps
| never be able to recover the blow which they have
| received.
During these earth and sea quakes-which last
however, did not extend beyond the north side of
| Neira and TO the south side of Great Bandas-Gr.
! aong Api was quieacent and nc alteration was Oh.
| served in the smoke proceeding from 1t.
"Ths accounts from the isalds OF Rossehsein
and al were even more tragicAl, anu the dss.ruc-
ton there not less great. The spice parks Kslie
| and Noorwegsn, on Great Banda, the last which
remained standing, also At length fell in, and at
present there are not more than two habtable
houses In Neira. The residency house has suffered
much. Rock and earth slips from the Papenberg
| occurred there tor length of time.
"The same disastrous accounts had been received
from Ceram. An earth and sea quake had also oc
Cured there on the 26th of November and caused
great damage. The heavy rollers of the sea had
swept away the houses on the beach, and thrown
more than 100 prahas On shore Of which a mum
Der Tad been destroyed, while many persons fell
victims to this terrible commotion of nature.
From Amboyns we also learn that on the morn
ing of the 26ih of November, about half past g. the
earthquake was felt in direction from N. E. to w.
W., with duration Of about five minutes. This
| was preceded on the 10th by some slight Shocks
The disturbance of the also took place, but not
to such destructive and heavy extent as at Banda,
although the same day. Very little damage was
| caused. The accounts from the islands near Am.
| boyna are not 30 unfavorable. Nearly all expert
enced the extraordinary eommotion both OF sea
and land. The houses at Saparua and many ma
tive bos . were seriously injured, and very heavy
loss has been caused.
"At Ternate as we'll as Cachian two heavy
| shocks of earthquake were felt ON the 2oth OF No
vember, at eight in the morning, and at the last
| place they were repeated tor some days inc
| weather generally calm. and Hlthougn the
| mountain of Ternate did not give out more smoke
than usual, q spbterranean noise was heard In II,
| our not very loud.
| "Ths earthquake which occurred at Batavia and
Buiienzong on the night of the Goth OF December,
was also felt in the residences OF Krawang, Mage.
| lang Bantom Banyumsss. Tagal snd Pekalonssn,
and in the LamPong districts. Cholera had oroken
| out at Padang, and a number OF persons had died.
| The Scientific American says that campnoE
| has been discovered to be an antidote 10 that
| terrible poison, strychnine. A man who had