The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-03-01
ONE THING NEEDED
Lake Michigan Gould Rise Up and
Surprise Chicago.
an Ys Needs Il an Earthquake to sse II q
Cofng-what nm Ancient Mar.
liner says About Sach
Matters

"Ap-opcs Of the recent Atlantic tidal
wave said an ancient mariner TO Chi
eagc Tribune man the other day, IAN
! account of one nearer home might be
OF interest at this time II isn't neces-
s1<y TO have an ocean Of water to pro-
Guce one OF these waves by long odds.
Cid Lake Michigan could get up o
prime article n that line and show Chi
! cago few things heretofore unthought
Of Al that would be necessary would
be On earthquake IN. the lake and then
there would be from six 20 ten feet OF
water here in no time The story that
l started to tell you has an earthquake
| rs the prime cause, a tidal wave as the
immediate effect, and . ruined town
| as the result.
New Madrid, No, was DESTROYED bv
| the great shake as il was called, in
/ the yeer 1911. The whole Mississippi
valley was affected The center Of vio-
ienee was Of Little Prairie, near New
the Ohio valley as high as Pittsburgh.
/ New Madrid suffered more than any
( other town on tAe Mississippi At that
! time Indians were dangerous and the
/ persons engaged in carrying produce Ia
+ boats to New Orleans kept in eon,nanv
I for mutual defense. In the middle OF
/ December l6 there was terrible shocA
I and Earring OF the boats 50 that the
/ crews were ali awakened and hurried
on deck, thinking of an Indian attack.
! The noise and commotior were dread
ful, but soon stopped. In tho morning
I loud rearing and kissing were heard
and there was tremendous boiling up
OF the waters of the Mississippi in hugo
/ sSells. tossing the boats shout so vio-
/ leutiv that the men were thrown about
on the decks. The water in the river
( changed to reddish hue, then became
/ black with mud thrown up from the
/ the bottom, whilo the surface, dashed
/ by the agitation Of the earth beneath,
was covered with foam, which. gath
! cring into masses the size Of q barrel,
/ loated along the trembling surface.
J The earth opened In wide assures,
md closing again threw the water.
( sand and mud In huge Jets higher than
! the tops Of the trees. The atmosphere
was flied with thick vspor of gaa
/ At New Madrid several boats were cur
RED by The great waves up onto the
bank Of the river tust above the town.
and were left high and dry consider
/ able distance from the water. Many
/ boats were wrecked on tho snagS
/ while others were sunk or stranded on.
! the sand bars and islands The scenes
FOR several days during tire repeated
shocks were horrible. The sulphurated
/ gases discharged tainted The air with
1oxious efffuvia, and SO strongly inn
pregnated the water Of the river for one
/ hundred and fifty miles below that 10
could hardly be used for any purpose
/ for many days
I New Madrid, which stood on blur
/ twenty feet above the summer foods,
| sunk so low that the next rise covered
81 TO depth OF five feet. The bottoms ~
several lakes in the vicinity were Gle
waited and have since been planted with
corn. People lived along the river 10
! those days more than in the country.
SO the big water disturbance did proba-
/ bly, more damage than the 'shakes'
/ where there was no water. So you can
! easily see how there can be tidal r-nvs
! without en- ocean and that we may
: have one Of orr own some day. When
Z IL comes il should be e good one, "a.
those eastern people will be satisfied
/ we did not manufacture Il 10 get even