Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1881-05-23
Destruction of Chic.

Destruction of Chic.
A letter IRON an officer on board United
States steamer Galens, a. Kastro, Island of
Chic, Greclan Archipelago, under date of April
Is. snys:
"Ol the 5th, in obedience to teeersphic Or
ders from Admiral Howell, We left Coussanti-
nople and came hither to render all assistance
possible to The Inhabitants rendered homeless
oy t. q fearful earthquake of the Sd. We an
chold d 10 this harbor at 8. m. of the 7th, hav'
lug been delayed twelve hours ty running
aground in the DardsueIles. A working party
of oue Lundted msn was sent on short to recnv.
cr the dead bodies, pull down dangerous wills,
etc. The scene which met their gaze was ap-
paliag. Hardly hsbitable house is standing.
and the poor people are liVirg 10 the fields u1-
Ger impOvissd tents Of bed quilts, sheets, and
anything, in taot that will cover them. tho city
berg entire y deserted. Some houses remain
partly dfmOllshed With all the contents left just
as they WAro when Ghe swayng walls came tum-
bling around their ownt rs heads. In one house
| saw tho .stle standing all set and the food
upoa it, as when the people fl d. Stores all
StACd olcu with ev' ,thing there, some cover,
with d,brs. others that you can walk through
with money and valuabes left in the hasty
flight of the owners, many Of whom are buried
| ueneath the falleo walls of their own buildings
l6 is estimated that 40 per cent. of the inhabi-
tsnts were killed and 10 per cent. wounded.
Th' people have been 90 terrified that only tho
b oldest will venture in the city, and then it is
generally to seek assistance to have q rnlalive
eXhumad. They will cling to Us and beg Us to
send few men with them to dig for the Uodi2s
that ire dear to them. | had man take me
to spot. aud pointing to q smear of blood on
the side OF house. hold up two fingers ard
make me understand that two were buried
| there utdor che fallen stones. Iu another place
| cur men ", ra digging where ten were buried,
| aDd it was sorioW!ul 10 see the disappointment
| OF he man who had cot the psrty there when
they dug cut msn whom he Supposed would
| havo litte girl clssped By the hand. When
| b.: escaped the man and girl We're band 10
| hand eudeavorDg to get awoy. but wore caught
! 6y the falling walls. Ths greatest uunber
! fouod il one place is at the Fort, where there
were 26O soldiers entombed under the fallen
Wss.
Since the first two or three days after our
| arrival We have been busy collecting the wound.
| I'd, leaving the dead for the present where they
lie, as it proved to be more than the relieving
| forco could do to attend to the wounded. And
sill there are places not visited, and the suffer-
ten DAYS sire, the disaster. Doubtless many
| have died who could have been saved had an
adequate force been here to c,lleot the wounded
aud surgeons enough to attend thom. Our
no surgeons have been unceaiiug 10 their To-.
bors night aud daY, wt.h ouly very short
periods OF rest, ampu :atlng. setting fractures,
dressing wounds, etc The English, French
| and Ausrlsns are ais, unremtting, and each
,stiuuaity has iis own hospital tent, With its
fig over it. The wounded are being sent to
Smyrna as fast as transportation oan be pro-
vided,
$50 general was the destruction that isolated
farm bouses and even the low stone walls divid.
| ing the fields werd shaken dnwn. and the tomb
s:ones in the graveyard at Ksstro that are not
dowo stand at every c. ooceivable augle. Nature
is not yet at rest, for lremblings md shocks arc
| oontinual7 oceu ring. On he there we're
| shree dis iuct shocks. and att m. on he 1lth
there WAS severe one that lasted ten seconds.
1t shook the ship, and there was rumbliog
poise like thunder and two distinct Jerks,
We all rusbed on deck to lock at tho town,
kooWine it nust have sff ,csed it. Iu the haze
| of the evening We ,uld sac 40 immense cloud
Of dust rise ABOVE The whole city, 80 thick that
it had th, appearance of fcg ind caing that
the wreck, of bulldogs bad been further shat.
| ter ID by ibis forcs OF nature. The people are
still paralyz ID By terror. Yesterday GU, guids,
| who was showing Us the nearest Way 10 q cluster
Of houses that had been =stroyed. could not be
lnduc3d to pass within 500 ysrds of house,
but would make vile circuit to get by Q
standing wall. rhoss who arc left of the in-
habitaus are encamued 10 the fields. and the
horrors Of that fea fu! Sunday have so terrorizsd
| them that they viii not enter iuln to look for
| va u ,bles that are known to be there.
"Kas 70 is but one city, but all the villages for
! miles around are destroyed, aud the suffering
ID, rc is even greater than here, for they are
|! 10 mspy c:ses out Of reach IF assistance. Our
steam lauacll, With twu boats fitted With mat
tresses in toR, has made several trips to q
village ten miles from here. bringing the
wounded TO this place where ths5 can get nedi
loa treatment. Food is scsrce, tui rstions are
served out to the destitute, which includes all
the irhsbtsnts, and l believe there are 90
leases of suff.ring from hunger.
| On Friday, the 8ih, five days after the terrible
lhhock of Sunday, our party discovered at the
Ivillsgo Of Ra!amtsla one.y ear-old baby, alive
end uninjured, = beam having fallen in such
way as to protect it. OF course it WAS very
hungry, but cried with considerable strength.
ali its relations had been killed and there was
no one to take it. One Of off ,ers made arrange.
ments to have it carei for lvr the present, and
ia seriously thinking of adopting it. The most
melancholy slSnIs We see nIe Hnefe sne appear.
aacs Of the dead plainly indicates. that they we're
not il stantly killed, but, having been caught by
falling beams and DEBRIS WounIed and manned,
have shrugged until they died in their en-
deavors to free themselves. The mrjorisy Of
the people Of one small village owe their safety
to beir curiosity. A large steamer happened
TO be passing close IN to the shore, and they ran
down TO the bach 10 look at her. Duriog this
Tina the shock came and their houses were de-
tstroyed.
"Iu closing I must pay tribute to the unre.
mi!.ent labvrs and excellent nursing of the
| sisters" some of whom have arrived here
| They are in the hospital tents dressing wounds
that would make strong men faint, and attend
ling to the wounded in that gentle. quiet. pleas
ing way that makes sufferer feel that be ID
among friends"
The ,1onaer of the 18th century-everybody
should uss it tor impure blood-S. s. 3.