The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1875-07-02
Earth tguohe in South Aa"effc".
THE svoRY AS TOLD IN PRIVATE LETTERS.
From the New ork Tribune.


Yorl, Inv merchants doing business with
the United States of Columbia and by per
CONS who have relatives living IN the re-
o;on which was lately visited by tie earth
Quake. whereby 10000 persons lost thelr
lives These letters reveal terrloie con-
dition of affairs, in which desoidtion, rum,
and death abound. 1t appears that after
81. e,rtbouake had shaken down houses
,nd buried their inhabitants in the ruins,
hills of molten lava were showercd down
( from the orator of the Lobotaro Noun
tains. setting the ruins on fire and consum-
ing many of the inhabitants who were
struggling to extricate themselves pan
/ ic seized the few Survivors, ana they Ieo
I from the scene of desolation to MaracalDo,
where. at last accounts, they had taken
/ shelter IN the houses of any one who would
/ receive them No persuasion could induce
! them to return to the place OF their former
residence, and as a consequence thousands
/ of bodies were lying unburied amid the
ruins, filing the atmosphere with foul
( oClors from decomposition, ana rendering
the region of the upheaval for many miles
in eveTv direction unfit for habitation.
Among the persons in New York who
have commercial relations with persons
who resided in the desoated region, and
some of whose relations pcrished by the
earthCUakc. is Edward GOgOrza. In con-
yersation with a reporter he gave very IN
teresting history of the earthquake, as he
cleaned it from numerous letters which he
received from the scene of disaster. His
statement is in substance rs follows
The locality where the earthquake Oc-
curred is the great coffee district of South
America. and the quantity of that article
which we already know has been destroyed,
in stores and warehouses, amounts to T.
600, 900 pounds. This is serious blow,
and must greatly affect the supply iii this
country, as it was this years crop. which
was awaiting shipment to this country.
What loss there has been 10 the growing
crop in the interior is not yet known, but
it is hoped that the coffee trees have been
spared, otherwise the supply will be ar
fecte6 for some years to come. The losses
on merchants i'll this city, however, VIII be
very small, as they 90 not make advances
until the merchandise has left the stores
and is in transit and has arrived at Maroc-
aibo. The coffee is usually shipped IN De-
cember or January, and If the earthquake
had happened at that time, the losses to
merchants engaged in that trade i'll this
city would have been undoubtedly very
great. The region affected by the shocks
cover five degrees of latitude, and is 800
miles wide. I he shock extended in a
northeast direction, along the northern
range of the Andes. 1t was felt first very
perccptibly at Bogota, the capital of New
trlandU1, Iucnce SctIhCu ~ tIdNGi IIOI III,
gathering intensity ii advanced, until it
reached the southeast boundary line of
Nagdalena, where the work of destruction
began, continuing as it advanced along the |
eastern boundary of Magdalena, following
the line of the mountain range and de- /
s.roying IN part or whole the cities Of Gu
cuta, San Antonio, FL Basario, Salazar,
San Cristobal, San Cayetano and Santiago. |
The destruction was greatest III Grama- !
La 4 ArhnlaH1c (ncutillaS ua1 ('ncntp
OF the fourteen thousand persons who died !
from the effects of the earthquake, only I
about five thousand were killed outright ; ,
the remainder died in a short time from |
fever and iockiaw, which, ip that region,
nearly always supcrvene when severe inju- |
rieS have been received.
Tie first premonition of the terrible Wis |
itation occurred ON the night of May II,
when a strange rumbliug sound was heard |
beneath the ground, although no earth !
quake occurred. 1t seemed as if huge /
bowldel had been propelled over the earth, /.
causing a rattling OF windows and doors, 7
aud trembling Of crockery. 1t travelled /
i'll the direction afterward taken by the /
earthquake, and lasted only a few minutes. /
1t excited fears, which soon subsided when |
no serious results followed. But on the !
morning Of May IS a terrible shock oc- !
cured which brought CONSERVATION to all (
the inhabitants Of Cueuta. 1t suddenly |
shook DOWN the walls of houses, tumblod !
down churches and the principal buildings, I.
Lurying the citizens of the place in the /
ruins. Another shock completed the work /
of desolation by throwing down the walls /
that still remained standing. This with /
the shricks of the wounded ana dying, and /
the pitiful cries of those who had escaped, J
but who had lost their whole families, made (
a scene which, IL the words of a cores /
pondent, was ''the realization Of what (
Dante family outlined in his portrait Of the !
Inferno Three more shocks followed of /
equal Intensity, but there appears to be no /
evidence that there were any openings in (
the earth, which, on similar occasions,
have engulfed buildings and inhabitants, /
at least not in Cucuta. The shocks. with /
lesser force, however, seem to have been !
felt throughout the whole region of the |
earthquake for two days aftorward, ex-
tending to Cartagena and the western sea /
coast.
The scenes that followed the first shock !
are described as most fearful and terrible
In this hour of destruction. when men and !
women were praying for relief and mercy. |
others who had escaped began an indis- /
crlminate pillage, searching the ruins for /
treasure, and in many cases robbinp the /
dying and dead. The desire for plunCler /
was so great in many instances that the /
robbers mU dercd persons who were caught !
III the falling tjmbers and who, could not
eXtIicate themselves, though only slightly /
injured. The vaults OF the banking houses /
were penetrated aud large sums of money /
stolen. tGhe thieves were monarchs of I.
the ruins, said a correspondent. Then, !
70 add to the horror of the calamity. tie /
Lobotera Volcano suddenly began to shoot /
out lava In immense quantities, OF, as n !
correspondent writes to Mr.. Gogorza, cit
sent ont mass of molten lava in the form
of incandescent balls of fire into tho citv :,
Some of these balls fell upon the German
drug stores of Theirs & Co. and Diesel 4,
Co., setting them on fire immediately. The
flames communicated with the adionjup
dwellings shower of lava set the ruins
of the large city in flames while .he earth
was still quaking, aAd, writes correspond
ent, '.if painter could have seen the oc /
currence and possessed the power to put it
on canvas (although he might not paint a
q vino Aan.- with iLa l,,riA a,,,,ss