Connecticut western news., 1873-05-02
The San Salvador Earthquake.
Details of the Terrible Affair.


 shocks, but the fact had nearly disap- peared from the minds of most of the people, when, on the 18th, it was vio- lently moved by three tremendous shocks, at the second of which the whole city was laid in ruins, leaving for it's successors to expend their destruc- tive force upon but the quivering earth, already relieved of its .superincumbent houses. The shaking commenced about midnight, the inhabitants, as is the GUS tom in these countries, being all asleep at that hour. At the first shock, which was of an oscillatory character and of short duration, everybody was rudely recalled from dreamland, and, snatching such garments as were nearest at hand, fell pell mell into the streets. But here the situation was even worse, for hardly had the terror-stricken crowds got out doors before the second shock came cracking upon them, accompanied by short, thunder-like discharges, and the city was wrenched and twisted from its foundations, and in few seconds came crashing to the ground. It seemed as if the shock seized upon one whole side of the city and wrenched 1t violently around, tearing houses from their foun- dations and leaving nothing behind but loose bricks and mortar and dense clouds of blinding dust and crumbling abodes. In the streets the danger was of course greatest from falling bricks and stones, but, remarkable though 1t seems, the loss of life was comparative ly insignificant, although at this early report after the earthquake it is totally impossible to determine what the- mor- tality may really be, since there has yet been no time to clear away the debris, under which it is by no means improb- able that many battered and unrecog- nizable corpse will be found. A grand rush, however, was immediately made to La Libertad, one of the seaports, and so many lives were saved by the rapid escape of their owners. Many persons were more or less injured in their flight out of town, by falling bricks and abodes, but the greatest loss is un- doubtedly in the tremendous destruc- tion of property, not house hardly being left standing except the National Palace, which is constructed entirely of wood.
 The brick and adobe edifces fell like ,card-houses, not even wall remaining standing in most cases. Most of these houses were built many years ago, and were cumbrous and stout enough in their walls to inspire feeling of perfect security against almost any onslaught of man or nature. But whosoever trust ed to these treacherous walls received 8 cruel enlightenment upon the impo- tency of mans most solid contrivances to resist the earthquake. All the sugar estates in the vicinity of this city re- ceived serious injuries, and will be pre- vented from completing their harvests. Most of the foreign residents and mer- chants escaped with very trifing losses. The total damage to property in the city and environs is calculated at $1 ,OOO, 900, but it is not so easy to determine yet to what figure the damage to the whole country by interruption of the harvest will ascend.
 An address to the Lord Mayor of Lon don has been prepared, and goes for. ward by the present mail, and I cannot do better than furnish your readers with a copy of it, which I append hereto
 Sir Sidney Waterloo:
 MY LORD: It is with feelings of the deepest sorrow that I undertake the melancholy task of communicating tc your Lordship the sad account of { great calamity which has befallen this republic.
 On the night of the 18th of the pres ent month, San Salvador, the capital o1 the republic, was visited by three dis tinct shocks of earthquake, so intense and destructive that almost before the unconscious inhabitants could fairly | 4o # 4h01r :, ,a1,-
 peril, many were hurled violently out O.
 their beds, only to be buried in the de
 scending ruins of their homes. At tht
 second shock, the dreadful visitant hat
 left no roof standing, and what an in
 stant before was brisk and prosperous
 city of some 30,000 souls, was rendered
 an immense accumulation ofloose brick
 and mortar, scene of desolation and 1
 complete wreck.
 I shall not pause, my Lord, to dwel
 upon the details of this dreadful calami
 ty, nor permit myself to describe to yo1
 the wide spread misery which 1t mus
 entail, and the hundreds of cases o
 terrible individual suffering which
 leaves to mark it's destructive course
 The pen is no competent exponent c calamity so great as this, which, in deed, can only be understood in all it
 dreadful magnitude by each one's takin
 it home to himself and so approachin
 nearer to just realization of the flu measure of it's appalling import. Nor is the effect of this calamity COT
 fined to the place of it's occurrence it
 influence is sharply felt throughout tn
 whole republic. The harvest had jus
 begun and by the destruction of thi
 city, which was the central point ( ditribution for all of the country, it wi be completely thrown back, even whe1
 its utter abandonment be not rendere necessary. People who were rich onl
 few days ago are to-day thrown upo the world houseless, glad to accept an shelter, any help for themselves an
 their wives and their children. Tn considerable sums of money that we1 invested in houses and other perishab] ,, property have been wiped out as thoug they never were, and the resources ( the country left so crippled that proml pecuniary assistance from abroad rendered indispensable, not so muc for the restoration of the ruined city 6
 to keep from despair the thousands ( suffering families who are thus suddenl confronted with want in it's most press
 ing shape.
 The percentage of mortality, consider
 ing the magnitude of the calamity, very small, a fact in which the survivor
 clearly recognize the gracious inter position of the Almighty, who has thu mercifully frightened the tremendou burden of grief with which this suffer ing people is cruelty weighed down. Tho nTrr,osa If tbis oonorouDiootior my Lord, is to appeal through you Lordship to the British public in be half of the beggared and houseles ,, substance has been suddenly snatche 5 away from them by great convulsio of nature: in behalf of all classes (
 IL I =. L.