The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1872-04-10

An would
90 les, the ola "">''"'
Tho California Earthquales--'Terrfb
-Crmmblins Of fhOsises--Lah"'
Ridges and Watcr-Spoufs.
From the Virginia tNev.) Enterprise March ~
We Yesterday met with and interviewed
Ar Funk Bcll. division superintendent OF
the Western Union Telegraph Company III
this state. who was ut independence, lnyo
county. cal, last Tuesday morning when
tbe great earthquake occurred which shat
tered that whole region, and which SHOOK II
IN not a little in this city--three h'inured
miles north of what would seem to have been
the centre Of the great teiluric disturbance
The first great shock came at 300 on Tues
day morning, and was probably the most
severe that occurred. Mr.. Bell. who was
sleepiur i'm the second story of the hotel al
Indcpendcncc "a framed building filed in
with adobes). says that when the first shock
came it threw his pitcher and wasll-boWl
which were upon washstand SIX feet dis
tant. upon his bed, whence they rolled 10
the floor and were broken. Alter Re"
heavy sidcwiSe lurchcs from south to north,
during which Mr.. Bell was trying to climb
out Of his second-Story window, about hai
"a dozen perpendicular jots came, which
raj feet. The earth now settled down to Il
ste,,ly. iremulouS motion, which sort e
calm lasted long enough to allow Mr..
Bell to partially dress himself, find his
overcoat and carpet->;ek, and get down stairs
and out into the open air. Here he found
the startled inmates of the hotel, to the
number OF twenty-five or thirty-mcn, Wo-
men. and children, en- dlSh0biHe-all IN mo-
mcntarv expectation of Il repetition OF the
shocks. Frightened as all were, one man
still had sufficient command Of his wits to
notice Mr.. Bells overcoat and carpct-bag.
"lIalo" he cried, "here is Il man who has
packed his buds and is going to leave the
country The joke must have been con-
sdcr"d good one in some quarters, for Just
ut the rllomcnt the earth laughed such
laugh. and so shook its sides that nobody
cared TO make another attempt at wit.
From this time till nearly O'Clock the
earth was never for moment perfectly
quiet. and every few minutes heavy shocks
of few seconds duration WIRE occurring.
In all there were more than fifty very heavy
shocks. The first shock cracked and threw
down many walls and buildings, but il WAS
the heavy succeeding shocks which lcyclled
everything. The brick courthouse and every
brick and adobe house in the town and
through the whole country were thrown
down.
When the first shock occurred Mr.. Harris.
of the firm of Harris & Cline, rushed ont OF
his dwelling with his family. After getting
out he found one child WAS missing, and was
rushing back to rescue it when the whole
Building fell. 1t was supposed that the child
was killed, but upon cutting through the
roof and removing portion of the wreck OF
the building it was found and rescued quite
unframed.
1t would he useless to attempt to describe
the CONSERVATION which prevailed through
out the town during the time the shocks
were occurring; many supposed the last
great day had come. The shocks were az
companied with II great rumbling, and the
air was filled with great clouds Of dust
indeed, such quantities of dust filled the air
that a cloud was formed which was seen by
persons residing fifteen or twenty miles to
the northward The shocks were still con-
tinuing when Mr.. Bell left, and the people
were so utterly demomliZed that they did
not know where to turn or what to do.
The impression at Independence was that to
the southwark the earthquake was still
more severe than In that place, and fears were
entertained that but little was left of Ccrro
Gordo, and other mining camps in that direc-
ton. They worked an hour and half try
ing to get at Wells, Fargo & Co.'s treasure
box, buried in the ruins of Nathan Rhine's
store, and at last the stage came off without
it. Even as the stage started there came one
or two rafting shocks. All the abode build
ings at Fort Independence were laid low,
and a child killed the mother, also, was
seriously injured. The Inyo Independent
Office, frame building filled in with adobeS,
was not thrown down, but the office was
badly damaged-even a cooking-stove that
stood in it being smashed TO pieces.
Fourteen miles this side of Independence,
in the Sierra Nevada mountains, is Il large
mountain called Black Rock, the sides OF
which are covered with lava, and which is
supposed to be an extinct volcano. The SET
Tiers informed Mr.. Bell that during the time
the shocks were most severe flashes of light
were seen to issue from the top of this noun
tain and columns Of tire ran down its sides.
There are on the side of the mountain
three old lava streams, but when the stage
passed along no one had yet gone to see il
any fresh flow had occurred. Mr. Mallory,
formerly of Carson City, stated that he Oh
served flashes of light in other places in the
mountains, but he was of the opinion tina,
they were caused by rocks striking together
as they rolled down the slopes of the peaks
In places OH the stage road there were Ell.
countered rocks us large as two-story houses
which had rolled from the mountains. From
Independence to Big Pine, distance Of for.
ty-fye miles, there is not Il square yard OIL
ground that does not show cracks. NeaI
Big Pine they found crcvice across the
road sixty feet wide and six feet deep. OF
the road, but in plain sight. this erevice wa,
two hundred feet wide and over twenty feet
deep, and it could be traced IL long distance
running north and south, parallel with the
Sierra Nevada Mountains.
South of Fish Springs Slough the water
spouted out of the ground in many places
and there were still to be seen large pooh
when the stage passed. Here, also, ridges o.
ground from eight to ten feet in height were
raised UP across the road. At Big Pine the
heavy dining-table, with all it contained
was overturned, and five shocks were eXpe,
rienced while the passengers were eating
br .akfast.
Between Fish Springs and Bishop creek,
where formerly was desert place, there now
g,lshes forth q stream Of water large enough
to turn mill. In other places steams and
springs are dried up, and, in fact, the whole
country turned topsy-t,Iryy. AT Hot Springs,
while severe shocks were felt on the surface
the men in the mines GOO feet deep felt no
thing Of them. We have been told of many
other circumstances in connection with this
great earthquake, but have not room to men.
ton them.
The Brooklyn Eagle has editorials " three
feet long. They are not SO deep MS that, how