Connecticut western news., 1873-05-09
After the Earthquake.
A Correspondent Looks at San Salvador
 Alter it's Destruction. s

A Correspondent Looks at San Salvador
 Alter it's Destruction. V | As we approached the town of San
 Salvador, says letter writer, the signs
 of destruction became apparent. An
 aqueduct which spans the road, and
 from which the city was mainly supplied,
 lay bloken. down, its massive arches
 blocking the road, and the remnants
 threatening to fall at any moment. The
 bullock drivers were doing splendid
 business, the whole route being throng-
 ed with their wagons going to and fro.
 On arriving at the suburbs of the un-
 fortunate city, our driver, an impudent
 vagabond, stopped, and refused to go
 any further. We persuaded him, how
 ever" to drive to the plaza, where we | found the President, and most of the in
 habitants that remained,g eneainped.
 The English Vice-Constll could not be
 found immediately, so we waited on His
 Excellency the President, and made
 known the object of our mission, placing our services at his disposal, and 4assur- ing him of the sympathy of Her Britan- nic Majesty's Government. We soon
 afterward found MT. Blair, acting Vice.
 Consul, who in company with some
 other English gentlemen, was working
 hard to save what he could from the
 ruins of the British Consulate we" s1s In company with one of these gentle
 men, a MT. Mofat, made an inspectio on
 of the city, taking sketches of some | most striking ruins. Such scene of
 desolation I have never before witness ed, ueless it be Africa. The whole
 town was down. with the exception of
 one or two wooden houses. oi All the
 churches, including the cathedral, were
 heap of ruins the spire of the latter
 had been arrested in its fall, and re-
 mained in slanting position, like the.
 leaning tower of Pisa, but at a much
 greater angle. One of the bells must
 have been swung completely round, as
 it remained mouth up. The United
 States Consulate was mass of ruins inside, though the outer walls were standing. MT. Riddle, the Resident
 Minister of the United States, with his
 five little children, had a very narrow
 escape. ,...ati.g r.T zyAy rq40 ''
 "a, The Palace, being built of wood, re-
 mained standing except where stone
 had been used, in which places the
 sides had fallen, leaving great gaps
 in the building. There was not single
 house left in habitable condition; the
 stronger the walls the greater was the
 ruin, and the streets were one mass of
 debris. MT. Blair and his, friends were
 living in the patio under rude sort of
 tent, surrounded by the ruins of the
 consulate. They were all wonderfully
 cheery under the circumstances, and as
 kind and hospitable as if nothing had
 happened. .. Mrs. Keogh's escape was miraculous !; the room in which she
 was sleeping was completely wrecked, and must have been killed but for some beams which prevented the walls from crushing her. Accounts differ as to the number of lives lost-some sayas many as fifty killed and 300 wounded: others not so much; but all agree that the number is wonderfully small consider ing the damage done. Indeed, looking at the ruins it seems extraordinary how any escaped, especially as the catastro- phe happened in the night. .5s5 Most proyidentially the final. shock, which 1 brought down the town, was preceded by two others of sufficient force to awaken l and alarm the inhabitants, who had l time to rush out, and SO save their I lives. 9rav, es.7- laisag 5sLf 8i ss5trf gadlo 1 -a The President behaved most nobly, I and by his admirable regulations and the discipline which he, enforced, pre- vented any riots or robberies. The city ! was placed under martial law citizens were authorized to shoot any one inter- | fering with their property, and sentries | were posted at thecornerso of hestreets, | with orders to fire at any one lurking f about after dark. Judging by therway | the rife-balls were flying about during the night, they must have kept a sharp ! lookout. MT. Taylor, an American gentleman, who has been superintend. ing the laying down of telegraphs in the country, extended his hospitality to all indeed, do not know what we should have done without his assistance. He contrfved to have 8 good breakfast and dinner prepared for all who chose to avail themselves of it, although his house was ruined like the rest. During our stay in the city some forty eight F hours--we experienced seven or eight shocks of earthquake of more or less violence. No further damage was done by them, simply because nothing more could be done, unless the earth opened and swallowed up the ruins. In some places it already opened, some of the
  of considerable depth. MT. Riddle, who had taken his family out to a hacienda some three or four leagues off, rode in to see us. We went together over the ruins of his house-a most melancholy sight: Many horses and mules were killed by the falling walls, and those nerves quite shattered. MT. Blair told IA lot 2e T. I.1 | animal, was now quite worthless from stop and tremble at the slightest sound. tt every shock all the cocks began to ,row, and pigeons wheeled wildly in the .ir. sss sll.as. .ufL a.'.l hsslate s19oaa8 The President issued a decree the day ollowing the disaster, saying that the own would be rebuilt on it's old site. One cannot help admiring the pluck of he gallant old man, but it is nothing nore nor less than tempting Providence oldo suchia thing. The city has been destroyed already six or sev- ,n times, at intervals of about twenty ] 7ears the last time was in 1854. The yround on which it is built is 8 mere hell. By placing one's ear to the earth unnln8 Wa1er may De u1sGlncUly 'heard, Y, md if struck by any heavy object hoi- ow sound is produced. The Indians would never build on that site, and it is heer folly to do so now. Before we eft San Salvado or Ccarpenters were hard t work erecting temporary wooden t( louses in the plaza, and g military band played there in the evenings. The sick
 nd wounded having been already, re- qoved to Santa Tecla and other places, he services of Dr. Smyth were happily SO heland MT. Davey irs- urned to Libertad by coach, and .Mrs Blair accompanied me on horseback. a, ,ooo- -G& --&l 20 .-g1sszi lgurrRiEI3e shT In the wreck of. the .Northfeet, one