Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1875-07-22
The Sacrifice Of Human Life.

The sacrifice Of human life during the
past six months has been simply appall-
ing, as will be shown by the statistics
which we print below. In making up
this record we have made use only Of the
great disasters which have been reported
by telegraph. The minor casualties 1t is
impossible 10 estimate, Epidemics have
been the most severe destroyers of life, al
though neither the cholera nor the plague
has ravaged any part OF the world. In
the Fiji Islands alone $4,000 people have
persisted by measles and other diseases in
troduced since the annexation OF those
islands To Great Britain. This unusual
fatality from comparatively innocucus
disease the London Times explains upon
the ground thatthe European nations have
become hardened to 1t, and that il was de-
structive to these islanders because they
were having II for the first time and were
not accustomed to this boon of British civ
ilization Earthquakes come second in
the list Of destroying elements, having
killed over 90, 900 people. We have no
record of the loss Of life by the recent
earthquakes and accompanying volcanic
disturbances in Iceland, but there have
been four other earthquakes from which
the loss of life has been given approx
mately as follows: In New Granada, &c.
900; In Asia Minor 1000; in the Loyalty
Islands, where the earthquake was accom-.
panied by terrible tidal. wave, 1000; and
at San Crstobal, Mexico, 70. A fam
inc In Asia Minor during the early
part of the year sweptoff 10000 people
before relief could reach the afflicted re-
gion. Floods come next in the disastrous
catalogue, their. ravages having been al
most exclusively confined to Europe The
overflow of tho Garonne in the southern
part of France destroyed 5000 lives, and
that of the Danube in Pesth 600. While
orr own country was severely ravaged BY
foods during the spring, especially In the
Southwest and in Pennsylvania, their de.
struction was confined to property. We
can find no evidence that more than six
lives were lost by them, although many
of them were very sudden and swept ev.
erything before them, being accompanied.
as they were, with huge masses Of ice.
The marine disasters Of the past six
months have been peculiarly destructive
OF life. fiftyfour vessels, nearly all OF
them steamers, have gone down, taking
with them ,303 persons, the most promi.
nent OF which are the following: The
p'hiiSis VIZ thc Dttlty iSidHhs, ODU, the
Gutenberg, off the Australian coast, 1866
the Cadiz, 90; the Flu Sing, Chinese
steamer, 30; the American ship Violetta,
AZ the Vicksburg, collision with ice.
bergs, 40; the Thornabia, 30; the Cortes,
~; the George Batters, 81; the Bride.
Berar, Berlin (Japanese) and the Alice, 90
each; and the Lochnager, 10. There
have been other severe disasters on
the South American, Chinese land
English scoasts which involved
serious loss of life, but IL Is impossible to
estimate them, rs the telegraph furnishes
no record. The season has been unusually
characterized by tornadoes and hurricanes.
and OF these there have been eighteen
which have been accompanied by loss Of
life, as follows. In Hong Kong, 500;
Georgia, 317; Chilli, 90; Louisiana, 90.
France, IL; Missouri, @ Mississippi. II
Arkansas, s; Michigan, 3 Wisconsin. 3:
Illinois, 8; South Carolina, 2, and Kan.
sas, /; total, 944. Thirty-five fires have
been reported, by which 304 lives have
been sacrificed. Only three of these have
been accompanied by heavy loss OF life
being the burning OF match factory AZ
Gutenberg, Sweden l50); steamers at New