St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1883-11-10

fires have started among the debris. Hardly
human being is visible within the limits
OF the city. solitary Arab cropping about
in the narrow, crooked streets, or friend
less dog searching for lnorsei from some
OF the shattered kitchens are the only signs
of life. Tents dot the hills about the city,
and in these thousands of the population
now find abode. In the white-wa1led vii
Iage there is no distinction between Ar
menians or Greeks, Jews or Christians. All
are huddled together promiscuously, with
out regard to race, the one idea being that
OF self-preservation.
The loss OF life in Smyrna was not great,
probably not over 125 persons, owing to the
absence of so many of the inhabitants from
the city and the precautions taken for in.
slant flight by those bold enough to stay
till the last. Some 200 or $50 people were
injured while making their escape, but only
few seriously. The destruction of prop
erty and life in the outlying country and in
the districts remote from Smyrna has been
very large. All along the western coast OF
the peninsula, which presents as jagged
and irregular an outline as any in the
world, and in many respects very much re-
sembles the opposite shore of Greece, the
shocks were so severe as to change the for
nation of the land in many places. Some
Of the deep bays, with bold projecting pen.
insulas and islands, have been almost filled
up by great land slides which came tearing
down the steep declivities with the water,
sweeping before them every habitation.
Tamos, Metelin and Lesbos, o few miles off
the western coast Of Antolia in the Egean
sea, were all severely shaken up, and there
was large loss of life and property on
Tamos, while the other two suffered much
less. One of the most curious things about
this severe action of nature was that Chios,
whore the destruction was the greatest two
weeks ago and which lies only few miles
from Smyrna in close proximity to
the other islands affected, this time suffered
only slight tremor. At the mouths Of the
Hallys and the Iris the marshy tracts and
some of the alluvial formation disappeared
entirely and left bed of water several
miles in extent, and of two to six feet in
depth, through which the tops Of the trees
project and make dense forest partly
submerged. The southern table land was
rent and sundered in many places, and the
numerous small salt lakes, with which it is
dotted, have gone from sight. From the
junction of the Kara sea with the Murad,
near Kapau MAIDEN, which forms the Eu-
pirates, to the rise Of the Edrens near
Tashardi, the earthquake has been very
severe and the effect of the shocks ex-
tremely disastrous. All along the Taurus
range, and to the south and west of it, the
earthquake seems to have the deepest hold.
All through the limestone hills, Astounding
chasms have been made. The long ridges
of black volcanic rock, in the midst of
which are many platforms and tablelands,
and upon which the rock terraces rise one
above another and terminate at the crest
in conical submits, has been so disrupted
that they are thrown into unrecognizable
shapes and seem to be robbed entirely of
the weird attractions which formerly in.
vested them with so much interest to
tourists and students of natural history.
The course of the Cox River, which winds
through colossal cliffs of limestone and
forms the celebrated pass of Erkeuke, has
been completely changed for about half it's
length. The formation of the pass, which
is the only one through which armies com.
ing from the interior Of Asia Minor can de.
scend Into the valley of the Euphrates, has
also been very much altered, many of the
rocks of Shay Schists having been torn
away; one of the peaks, Bulghar Dagh,
was shaken off yesterday afternoon, and
descended into the valley with tremendous
force, gathering under itself huge masses
Of earth until, before it spent itself, it be-
came great landslide. Part of the village
Of Mazetti was buried under it, and some
eighty or ninety Kurds persisted in their
huts.
The whole country around the Gulf of
was badly torn up and many |
lives lost there. The course of the river
mi ca massas nf roclr which fell from the |
Ids Of the steam e1af;les great assures ware
made in the semi-cry limestone |
md nccasionaIIy q large section Of the thin.
v imbedded rock has been thrown up to |
:orrn a great arcrescanca mon the erten.
i've tahie.lands, 49,
=. : $3.50 - ''...>
On the tableland between Heran and
Dram there was river which for many
years fell into cavern and disappeared. /
The earthquake both closed up the mouth |
If the cavern and dried up the small river,
The shock seemed to have extended all |
through the extensive tablelands in the
snti Taurus range but not to have inflicted |
my serious damage in that section. In the
gypsum district and the environs of the t
Sari Chi Chok the loss will be considerable.
From the peaks of the Kartun, an isolated I
'ock Of feldspatic trachyte, which stands
proudly up like gigantic fortress and the