The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1892-12-03
THE SALVADOR EARTHQUAKE.

The recent earthquake reported from San
Salvador did not take place in The neighbour
hood of the city of that name. as al first re-
ported, but in the Gull of Fonseca, which
separates Salvador from Nicaragua. Its
chief force was felt at the port of La Union,
on the west side of the gulf, and at the base
OF the old volcano Conchagua. which has
been supposed to be extinct. There was no
loss Of life. but considerable destruction Of
property
The significance of the phenomenon
arises from the eoniagiousness of EARTH
auakes in Central America. When one
tembor is felt it is safe to look for another
in the vicinity; a circumstance which the
natives explain on the theory that the force
generated 10 cause an earthquake is seldom
exhausted by one disturbance. but con-
tinues to act until il has expended itself on
two or three. San Salvador will always
bear watching in this regard. 1t is one of
the few countries in which the volcanic
forces of the later stages of creation have
not yet spent themselves. -Four or FIVE
times within the historic period the capital
city has been destroyed, the last time in
1854, and ii is safe to say that San Saliva
dorlans never 20 to bed without ring
to see II IZalco and San Miguel are tranquil
Some twelve years ago a new volcano burst
forth from the center of a lake which is the
great fish pond OF Salvador. The fish were
killed and couple of villages destroyed
The Gulf of FOnseca, where tie late dis
turbaBee took place, is a prolongation Of the
long depression of which Lake Nicaragua
Is the chief feature. From the gulf TO the
mountain range dividing Nicaragua from
Costa Rlea iacustrne basin extends along
a line parallel to the Pacific Coast, and this
again is cut by chain OF volcanoes, with
spurs In almost every direction. In the
last half century there has been no eruption
of a devastating character from any of
them; but the constant smoke and the ocea-
sional sand showers from their craters
show that they are not extinct. 1t has al
ways been question among men of science
whether these rents along the line Of the
lacuStrine depression would relapse into
absolute quiescence without giving one more
Illustration OF their power of mischief.
The engineers who lately made rrelm-
mary surveys for a north and south railroad
connecting the Mexican system with the
lsthmus of Panama naturally proposed TO use
the long depression which traverses Mica
ragua. OF the various routes which they
examined the most promising was the one
which followed the coast mesa of Guate-
Hdla INTO OdD SALVADOR, wound lis way
through the mountains of that State, and
finally skirted the Gulf of Fonseca and the
eastern shore of Lake Nicaragua to Costa
Riea. This road would traverse a volcanic
country from Mount Izalco TO the valley OF
the Particle, and would of course be subject
to the accidents which are chronic in such
restless regions. il should be built in such
a way that an earthquake would infiict the
least possible injury on the structure. II
would be the one road In the world on
which wooden trestle bridges would be
preferable TO heavy masonry.
Our knowledge is too imperfect to enable
US to traverse the history of the lacustrine
basins Of this coast. In Mexico they have
been gradually raised until they have be-
come series of graduated plateaus, stretch
ing from the c0rdilleras to the west coast
In Arizona and Southern California they
seem to have been sinking; the surface of
the Colorado Desert is in places 150 feet be-
low sea level The lacustrne basin of Mic
aragua is above sea level. Is its bottom ris-
ing or falling?