The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1884-08-21
THE EARTHQUAKES


Western Union office here from Il
4 following points: The Atlantic higl
lands, near Sandy Hook, Long Brancl
Philadelphia, New Haven, Bos5ol
Elizabeth, Plalnlield, Spring Dake, Co
tage City, Martha's Vineyard and Por
land, Me AT the last point 1T wa
only slight. Reports were also receiN
ed from many of the sub-oflices abou
,New York. Reports as to its duratlo
are diverse, but the average seems
= /be about 10 seconds.
An operator at Providence wa
questioned as to whether he had hear,
or seen anything unusual, and h
promptly replied he had. He had hi
hands on the steam pipe and it hat
trembled violently. He had beer
looking up and down the street to dis
4 cover the heavy team which up to thu
time of inquiry he had supposed wa!
passing. The question made him SuS
piclous of an earthquake. This suspi
cion was promptly confirmed by var
ious people rushing into the streets
and Office asking for an explanation
At 2:l5 p. m. the Atlantic highlands
experienced second shock but 1T was
Hess violent that at first.
at Philadelphia the scaffolding on
some new buildings going up on the
corner of Sixth and Reed streets was
shaken violently, and some bricks on
the boards were shaken off and fell to
the street below.
THE SEVEREST SHOCK.
The severest shock was reported
from Seabright, n. j., where the depot
was shifted to one side, shaking up the
contents and alarming the sole in
mate.
AT 2:30 p. m. an Intellectual effort
was made to raise the Long Branch
office, which had been in communica-
ton with the local Office up to the
time of the shock. The operator just
had time to report the shock, together
/ with the fact that the jars of his bat
Sreery had been overturned, when the
wire gave out.
at Hartford bareheaded man
rushed frantically to the telegraph Of
ice holding in his hand a newspaper,
which he had been reading. He said
he had been rocked violently, and that
the plastering on the ceiling above
him had been cracked, and in some
places had dropped off on the floor.
In Brooklyn the streets were alive
with people, who had come out to as
certain the cause of the rocking, and
TO gossip about it. One cool-headed
observer-upon the first perceptible
motion-took out his stop-watch aud
timed the vibration. He reported the
shock begun, as nearly as could be de-
termined, at 2:06.50 p. m, that the first
4 shock lasted just ten seconds, and that
sShe quieting down, as he described it, |
took nearly fifty seconds more. Off
hand guesses as to the duration varied |
from five seconds to two minutes, &C.
cording to the amount of the obserV-
er's fright and his judgment of the
flight of time.
TOTALLY UNLOCKED FOR.
The women and children, as they |
regained some degree of confidence,
returned to their houses, while the
men remained in groups in the street
discussing i. the occurrence so unex-
pected and startling. An earthquake
is something so unlocked for in this
part of the world that its causes and
the history of the most terrible ones
became the topics of paramount inter-
est. Above all, the people were con-
!. cerned in trying to find out from
those they talked with whether a
second and, perhaps, subsequent
shocks were likely to follow.
AT the observatory the United
earthquake and its duration were
noted. Assistant observers r. E. Hin
man and Merring were at the time in
the Office, about 200 feet above the
: level of the street. The first intima-
ton of the earthquake was slow
rumbling sound like the muttering
otkdistant thunder, which was imme-
diately followed by shock like that
OF a violent explosion, which caused
the building to CULVER, although it did
not shake perceptibly. The rafting
continued about eight seconds and
was accompanied by a rumbling
sound, which gradually died away.
The first shock was heard about 2:l0
o'clock. The effect of the jar was
much more perceptible in houses of
light structure. In many instances it
being reported that clearly defined
hooking movement was felt, and the
dishes in pantries were shaken from
the shelves. Thus far, however, no
damage of any kind is reported.
While the shock was felt strongly
in dwellings,, persons travelling on the
elevated roads did not know of the
Occurrence until told of it by people
that the shock felt on the
elevated stations was slight
as compared with that felt on tho
ground below. AS far as can be asctr-
tanned the shock was entirely imper-
ceptible on the water.
Immediately after the shock had
been felt at the police Central Office
considerable confusion was occaSioned
and the impression at first was pre-
valent that a violent explosion had oc-
CURED in the neighborhood. Little
investigation, however, led Acting
Superintendent Sanders 20 the conclu-
sion that the cause of the disturbance
was a real earthquake. He at once
sent out general dispatch to all
precincts asking for information in
regard to the shock in the city.
Answers soon began to pour in, and |
reporters were kept busy for two
hours writing out reports from the
different captains. 1t appears the shock
was felt about the same intensity
all over the city, although it
produced more alarm in the thickly
settled tenement districts on the east
side.
PERCEPTIBLE AT YoNKERS.
A telegram from the Yonkers police
said the shock had been felt there also.
The greatest excitement prevailed In
the Jewish and Bohemian quarter on
east side. The houses, which are
mostly high and lightly constructed
tenements, were violently shaken, and
the terrified inmates rushed into the
streets, carrying with them whatever
of their household effects they could |
move. The children, screaming with
fright, were borne out by their parents, |
who were hardly less panic-stricken,
and the whole population was soon |
massed in Center street.
In Ludlow street, between Hester |
and Canal, the panic was at its height |
The streets were swarming with peo- |
pie, and men, women and children
were hudled ogether, evidently think
ing the last hour had arrived and ex-
pecting every moment to see the walls
of their dwellings fall on them. The
women were shrieking and the chill
dren bawling, while the men were
either swearing or praying. This was
kept up for nearly an hour, when the
connection finally subsidized and the
police persuaded the people to return
to their houses.
Similar scenes were witnessed in
Mulberry, Jersey and Mott streets,
where the Italians have their colonies.
The fright, however, was not so in