The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1886-09-09
4 TERREBLE OALAMTTY.

afternoon brought the news of the almost
total destruction Of the city of Charleston,
South Carolina, by earthquake shocks. Ac-
cordIng 70 latest reports II is calculated that
at least three fourths of the buildings of
the entire city will have to be rebuilt be-
fore the houses will be inhabitable.
hardly house escaped injury, and nearly
every church spire Ia the city is demol-
ished, and most of those remaining stand
ing are 30 badly shaken and cracked that
1t would take but q light wind to blow
them over. Many assures in the earth
were noticed, from which a sulphurous
smell exuded, and fine sand, apparently
from great depth, was cast out. The
people last night and the night previous
generally remained in the streets and pub
lie squares, in tents and under such i'm
provised shelter as could be made from
sheets and other material at hand
AS yet il is impos able to give any cor.
rect estimate of the number OF dead and
and wounded, as bodies are constantly be-
ing discovered in the ruins of the wrecked
houses, and 1t will probably be some time
before fair estimate can be made, and
telegraphic news from the fated city will
be anxIously awaited day by day for the
horrible details.
To add to the horrors of the situation
fires broke out among the debris In several
sections, but so thoroughly panic stricken
and demoralIzed were the people that bui
little notice was taken of this fact. and
about twenty houses were destroyed before
an effort was made TO subdue the flames.
The city seems to have suffered from
several shocks, but the first, which took
place about 10 O'Clock Tuesday evening
was the most severe, the others not doing
60 much material damage. but adding ten
utterly demorslized and awaited in state
of horror, they knew not what
Last nights EVENING NEWS gave full
account of this terrible casualty up to {
late hour, and was the first and only paper
in this city yesterday to give any of the
particulars from the destroyed city.
While other countries have suffered Sc
Yerely from earthquakes, the United States
has been singularly fortunate, only one
other great shake, that caused much de
struction, being recorded In late years, al
account OF which We append:
During the year 1911 occurred what II
known as the "GreaI Shake" which DIES
troyed New Madrid, In Missouri, and al
fected the whole Mississippi valley. The
center of its violence was thought TO bC
near Little Prairie, twenty i've miles be
low NewM adrid the vibrations from which
EaIS 81 - 81,
high up as Plttsburg. New Madrid haV-
ing suffered more than any other town on
the Mississippi from its effects was
considered as situated near tho focus from
whence the undulatlon proceeded. At
this period there was danger apprehended
from the Southern In1ians, and for safety
the persons engaged In carrying their pro-
duce in boats TO New Orleans Kept in com.
paDy for mutual defense. In the middle
of the night of the 10Th of December there
was terrible shock and Earring of the
boats, so that the crews were all aWak ened
and hurried on deck with the weapons oi
defense In their hande, thinking the In
dams were rushing on board. Tie ducks
geese and other aquatic birds on the river
were thrown into the greatest tumult, anC
| with loud screams expressed their alarm
The noise and commOtion soon became
hushed, and nothing could be discovered
to excite apprehension, so that the boat
men concluded that the shock was
occasioned by the falling In OF {
large mass of the bank neal
them. In the morning loud roaring and
Kissing was heard, like the escape of steam
from boiler, and tremendous boiling
| up OF the waters of the Mississippi, il
huge swells, tossing the boats about sc
violently thst1he men with difficulty KEPT
their feet. The water of the river, which
the day before was tolerably clear, changed
to reddish hue, and became thick with
mud thrown up from its bottom while the
surface, lashed by the agitation of the
/ earth beneath, was covered with foam
which, gathering in masses the size of
barrel, hoated along on the trembling sur
face. The earth opened in wide assures
and closing again threw the water, sane
a1d mud in huge jets higher than the top:
OF the trees. The at nosphere was filled
with thick vapor or gas, to which tn,
| light impaired purple tInge.
At New Madrid several boats were
carried by the re1ux of the current into
| small stream that puts into the river ju S
above the town, and were left on the
ground by the returning water, consid
cradle distance from the river. Numer'
GUS boats were wrecked on the snags, Will
others were sunk or stranded on the sand
Il bars or islands. A man who belonged 4
one of the company boats was left for sew
eral hours on the upright trunk OF an OLE
snag In the middle of the river. sgains
| which his boat had been wrecked an(
sunk. 1t stood with the roots few fee
| above the water. and 10 these he contriveC
to attach himself, while every fresh shocl
| gradually settled the tree deeper In thu
mud at the bottom, bringing him neare
and nearer to the water, which seemeC
desirious of swallowing him up. WhIl
hanging there several boats passed with
out being able to relieve him, until a sklfl
| we'll manned, was rowed a short distanc,
above him, and dropped close to the snag
from which he tumbled into the boat as /
passed by.
The scenes which occurred for severa
days during the repeated shocks were hor
rible. The sulpherated gases discharged
during the shocks tainted the air with
their noxious effluvia, aud so strongly i'm
pregnated the water of of the river for LOT
miles below that il could be hardly useC
Tor any purpose for a number of DAYS
| New Madrid, which stood on bluff fl
| teen or twenty feet above the summer
| floods, sank so low that the next rise GOV
cred to depth of five feet The bottoms
of several lakes in the vicinity were ele.
waited 80 as to become dry, and have since
be en- planted with corn.
The walls of several buildings in Cape
| Girardeau were cracked, in some instances
| from the ground to the top, and
wide assures left. The shock was so Sc.
we're In this county that the fowls fell from
the tree as If dead; crockery fell from the
| shelves and was broken, and many fami
lies left their cabins from fear of being
crushed beneath their ruins.
HTaUTr AnTnAT