Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1896-09-10
SPEED OF A TIDAL WAVE.
Indications On the Pacific Coast of a.
Recent Disturbance.

RSCSuI
The tidal disturbances observed at
Vancouver Island and at New River. in
Mendocino county, within the last few
days, indicate unerringly, accordingly
to the gentlemen locally connected with
the coast and geodetic survey, that one
or more earthquakes have taken place
since the awful wave that caused the
loss of 10000 or more lives at Yesso.
The exact date of the tidal disturbance
at Vancouver Island is not known, SO
that there may be question whether
the manifestations there and at New
River worked the same natural convul-
sion. The register attached to the tide
gauge at Sausalito told of the Yesso
calamity before many of the facts had
been received by cable. But the ex-
tent of the information traced on the
maregram at Sausalito, as it is called,
was only that there had been an earth
quake which had caused the ocean to
undulate in an unusual way. The OBJ
server at Sausalito reports that when
the pencil attached to the tide register
was recording the Japanese tidal wave
he could lot see anything unusual in
the appearance of the water
Earthquake waves or Bhose given rise
by earthquakes are transmitted with
such enormous speed that the Japan
| disaster was recorded at Sausalito
about twelve hours after it occurred.
There are valuable records in the Of
fee of the coast and geodetic survey
which show beyond question that a
speed of six miles a minute, or $50
miles an hour, is to be expected under
such conditions.
The overwhelming of Simoda, a town
on the island of Nippon, appears to
have been almost complete parallel in
physical manifestations with the re-
cent occurrence at Yesso. On the 23d
of December, 1854, sharp earthquake
shock was felt in Simoda and upon the
shipping at 8 a. M. This was followed
at quick intervals for half an hour At
$3.50 the sea was observed washing into
the bay in one immense wave, thirty
feet high. with awful velocity.
In an instant the town of Simoda
was overwhelmed and swept high from
its foundations. This advance and re-
cession of the water occurred many
times The Russian frigate Diana
was hurled about by the rising and
falling of the water, which varied from
less than eight feet to more than forty
feet.
Captain H. A. Adams wrote of the
S1moda disaster that the sea rose five
fathoms above it's usual height, cover
flowing the town and carrying houses
and temples before it in it's retreat.
When it fell it left but four feet of
water in the harbor 1t rose and sank
this way, five or six times, covering
the shores of the bay with the wreck
of boats, junks and buildings. Only
sixteen houses were left standing in the
whole place. The entire coast of Japan
seems to have suffered
That terrific happening was recorded
by the tide register at San Francisco
twelve hours and thirty-eight minutes
later. The distance between Simoda
and San Francisco is 1927 nautical
miles. The wave transmission varied,
according to two estimates, from 358
AhAiACo POI hOul W oiV pei VI
6.2 miles per minute, which is about
six times faster than the most speedy
railroad train travels.
The tide-gauge was established at
Fort Point about 1852 and was removed
to Sausalito by Professor George
Davidson in 1877. The first large
earthquake wave recorded on the gauge
at this port was that of Simoda. The
great cOnvulsion at KrakatOa, in the
strait of Sunda, which took place only
a few years ago, was registered at the
Sausalito tide-gauge, and the news that
a great earthquake had occurred was
made public by Professor Davidson
weeks before the information was
otherwise known. From calculations
based on the record made by the tide
gauge at Fort Point after the Simoda
disaster Of 1854 the coast and geodetic
survey estimated the average depth of
the Pacific ocean, and the accuracy of
the estimate has been subsequently
demonstrated by deep-sea soundings.
1t is an interesting fact, in view of the
recent calamity at Yesso, that the loss
of life by earthquake disturbances up to
1896 on the entire earth has been at
least 1900, 000.-San Francisco Call.