The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1867-04-16
TERRIBLE EARTHQUAKE AT MY
TELENE.
OUer One Thousand Lives L

-. OUer One Thousand Lives Lost.
On Thursday, the 9th, the weather had been
close and UNIV holesomely hot, but as this is
generally the case with the south wind, which
had been blowing for some time, nothing was
thought of it, least Of all was there any fear OF
what followed. Though volcanic, as is proved
by its numerous hot springs, the island had not
during the present generation been visited oy
earthquake; it was now, however, to have
terrible experience of the phenomenon. About
: p. m, sharp shock, lasting some Is or Is
seconds, gibrated throughout the town, and be-
fore the fact was we'll realized, was followed by
a second, longer and much more violent one. L
happened at the moment to be down at the pier
Of the Austrian LIoyds agency, aud nearly halt
minute before the shock was felt shore,
saw the sea heave and foam out 10 the port as
if submarine explosion had taken place. Lit
tie time, however, was left for surprise. In
much less time than take to write it the dou-
bic thrill qaivered through the town, aud, reel
ing like drunken men, vi hole blocks of solid
stone houses collapsed as if they bad been card
houses. The Office of the agency and nearly all
the adjoining buildings, including the custom
house, the lighthouse Office, and the large oil
MILL thus fell.
Up in the town entire streets similarly
crumbed, burying their inhabitants by hun
QreOS IN Tue TQlnS. lie uue OH caStle, the
cathedral, the Governors konak, the prison, the
mosques, and, l believe, all the consular resi-
dences, more or less yielded to the violence of
the shock, and are for the most part mere heaps
of ruins. The very solidity with which the
town was built has aggravated disastrous effects
o. the calamity a hundredfold, both as regards
the loss of and destruction Of property. The
most complete ruin has fallen upon the lower
part of the town, where the earth literally
opened and swallowed broad belt of buildings
right up from the to the slope inland. At
this point permanent subsistence of the ground
has taken place, and the sea has accordingly en-
croached far into what on Thursday afternoon
was one of the busiest parts of Mytelene. In
fact to sum up the disaster, more than half of
our beautiful town--the prettiest and most live
ly, perhaps, of all the Levant-is desert of
ruins. The worst part of the ruins and the worst
OF the calamity is of course, the loss Of life.
AS yet We can only guess at the extent of this;
but it is thought that from 800 to 1000 have
persisted, while as many more have been MANNED
and wounded in every way. Up till to-day,
10 bodies have, | hear, been dug out of the
safer ruins; but how many may be buried under
others which are too dangerous to be approach
ed can only be surmiscd Such of the houses
are still standing have all been abandoned,
and the whole surviving population is now scat
tered over the hisides and among the gardens
outside the town-a few Of them under such
covers as they have been able to improvise, and
the rest bivouaciug without shelter of any kind.
Any attempt to describe the scene would be
useless. Heart rending grief, pauic and confu.
sion meet the eye on every side. Already a
need of provisions is aggravating the distress,
and only speedy relief from Smyrna or the
capital can avert great additional loss of life.
One of the Austrian Lloyd steamers and
French gunboat from Smyrna, have landed
quantity of biscuit and some other stores, but
in all not perhaps more than days food for
the place. 1t is earnestly to be hoped that the
Porte will at once send down tents, biscuits and
whatever other stores can be quickest got to-
gether. But not the town of Mytelene alone
has suffered from this great calamity; it has
scattered ruin and death throughout the whole
northern part of the island. Hardly a village
has escaped, and not merely property but life
has been destroyed in nearly the whole Molivo
has been all but demolished, and several hun
dreds of its 5000 or 1000 inhabitants have, it
is said, persisted in the RUNE 1t is, in fact no
exaggeratiOn to say that half the island has
been laid waste, with a sacrifice of human life
that may be reckoned by thousands. No such
has ever befallen Mytslene.