The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-11-25
JAPAN'S SEISMIC HORROR
FLAMES ROAST ALIVE HUNDREDS
CAUGHT IN THE RUINS.

Immense Heaps of Ruins in Gifu-Kano
and Kasssmatsu Both a Mass of De
bris-The Sensation That of Houses
Being Suddenly Raised and Then
Lowered Two or Three Feet.
SAN Francisco, CAL, Nov. 24.-These
details have been received of the earth
quake in Japan on Oct. 2s: "The up and
down trains on the Tokiado railway were
just meeting at Gifu station, the center Of
the disturbance, when the first shock oc-
CURED. The shock was accompanied by
rumbling sound. and was violent. People
on the trains thought collision
had occurred On looking out
of the windows, however, they
beheld tie station in ruins. Some Of the
passengers made their way into Gifu aud
found immense heaps of ruins Many
houses bad fallen, while others were SO
shattered that succeeding tremors of the
| earth threw them to the ground. In almost
every house some unfortunate was buried,
and the chances of escape were diminished
greatly by conhagrations In many places.
DAMAGE TO THE TRACKS.
The railway line was too much damaged
to allow Of the moving Of trains. and pas
SSuk0fS WcE0 COmp6Il6Q TO
make their way on foot to the neighboring
towns. The reads were found to be almost
impossible by reason of assures and land
slides
The town of Kano was found to be wholly
in ruins. not house remaining standing
Kassamatsu suffered a like fate, every we'll
ing being mass of debris. Everywhere
survivors were digging. out the dead and
wounded and fighting against confagrations
on all sides.
At Ichonomoya and Kiyosu the people
managed to save a few mats and were pre-
pairing to pass the night In the fields
Throughout the day and night the work Of
carrying the wounded to Eagoya pro-
ceeded, a continual stream of bearers pass
ing along the railway, which was the only
available route.
The inhabitants of the ruined town say
that the first sensation was that the houses
were being raised and then suddenly low
cred two or three feet. In fact there was a
marked subsistence OF the earth's surface
for a considerable area about Gifu, which
indicates that the latter town was the CEN
ter Of the disturbances.
FLAMES RAGE FOR HOURS.
Very soon after the houses were thrown
down. and while hundreds of people were
buried in the debris, flames burst from the
ruins Of the silk factory. and In a short
time spread to such an extent that
citizens were compelled to desist in their
work of rescue. The conhagration burned
out In one direction, but three other fires
broke out and soon joined together, sweep
ing from street to street. famed by a strong
wind. This was at o'clock in the after
noon and by o'clock in the even
| lug almost every part Of the
| town of Gifu was wrapped in
flames and the inhabitants had abandoned
all hopes of staying the confagratIon, saw
| ing what articles they could aud fleeing to
| the woods and hills. The police, aided by
the normal school students and the prison
ers in the jail, fought the fire all night. but
it was not subdued until the forenoon of
| the next day, when almost the whole town
| had been burned over.
| PoTTERIEs DESTROYED.
| The potteries in the prefectures of Dwarf
| and Mino, the great centers of porcelain
manufacture in Japan, and those at Seto
| and other towns, were almost entirely de-
stroyed, and it is reported that there is no
prospect OF resuming their industry this
| year. The shock was so severe that scarcely
| a sound house is left standing, with the ex-
| ception of the castle. The Gobo temple, be-
| longing to the Shin sect of Buddhists was
| crowded with worshipers when it fell,
| burying at least fifty people. The ruins
took fire and the shrieking victims were
consumed before the eyes Of the Mortified
| onlookers
METHODIST SCHOOL CoLLAP sEs.
A slight shock was felt at Nagoya on the
| night of Sunday, Oct. 25. On Wednesday
morning while forty Christians we're assem-
bled in one of the buildings of the Methodist
school the structure began TO totter and the
worshipers fled. One Christian and his
wife were killed and two Japanese were
fatally injured. Mr. and Mrs. Van Dyke,
missionaries, and one other white
person were dangerously hurt. Out of
| doors the city was in an uproar. Wild
shrieks and indescribable noises filed the
air, while every few moments came terrible
| thunder from the angry earth. Many
streets were blocked with fallen houses and
others were ohoked with the fleeing people.
| The thread factory, large brick building,
caved in, killing hundreds of persons, but
the old castle, despite its 400 years, stood
| firm.
THE LOSS OF LIFE.
The loss of life In the three towns which
go to make up the city of Nagoya is esti-
mated at from $50 to 1000. Up to the morn
ing of Friday, Oct. 80. 1868 distinct shocks
we're reported as following that of Wednes-
| day. As the wounded were brought into
| the city from the surrounding towns
reports continued to come of
incidents. Reports were also received of
assures in the earth two feet wide and
several feet deep, railway rails twisted,
iron bridges gone, river embankments sunk
or crumbled and fields flooded
A LAKE FORMED.
A lake 900 yards long and 60 yards wide
was formed at the foot OF the Hukusan
mountain, in the Gifu prefecture, and great
cracks were formed in the ground beside
the bills in Gifu. Water sprang from cracks
| in the ground and the water in the wells
was changed in color to brownish tint and
was rendered unfit for drinking. The em-
bankments of most OF the rivers were de-
stroyed, and in the city prefecture $50
| miles Of embankment must be rebuilt.