The San Francisco call., 1896-09-23
DISASTERS IN The
MIKADO'S REALM
Hundreds of Lives Lost in
Japan's Floods and
Storms.
KOBE SWEPT BY FIRE.
Millions of Dollars Worth of
Property Consumed by the
Flames.
EARTHQUAKES CAUSE HAVOC.
Reign Of Terror in the Land of the
Rising Sun Caused by Many
Catastrophes.
EARTHQUAKES CAUSE HAVOC.

TOXIC, JAPAN, Sept. 5.-Hundreds of
lives were lost and a vast amount of prop
erty destroyed by series of fires, floods,
storms and earthquakes in many portions
of Japan during the closing week in Au-
gust. On August 26 Kobe was visited by
a confagration that caused property loss
of millions of dollars.
In Gifu prefecture 4300 houses were blown
down, and along the Haji-gawa 400 per-
sons lost their lives. The severest storms
occurred on August &c. Along the Isatsu-
gawa eighty-four lives were lost.
AtKobe, after the fire had devastated the
city, forty people were swept TO their death
by the flood. In other provinces the loss
of life reached $500.
The great food was preceded by a severe
earthquake. Then followed q downpour
such as has never before been experienced
on the island. The European residents
were panic-stricken and sought shelter on
the highlands.
On August 26, near Kobe, the Minato-
gawa first topped and then preached its
banks, and death and destruction resulted.
From before midnight to after O'Clock in
the morning the fire-bells were striking
short, sharp notes as a signal of man s
strivings with an angry food. 1t was
Just after IL at nj ht that the first serious
warning was given. The western bank
was broken and a swift current spread
across the fields and gathered in the low
district around Hiogo station.
The line was covered and traffic was
ultimately stopped, although in this
quarter the depth was probably never
more than two and half to three feet.
Passengers from the west by one or TWO of
the late trains were kept waiting without
information for long period, and were
finally told that they could go no further.
One party of eight left the station on foot
in pouring rain at IL 80, and after wading
for long distance they reached the Nina
| togawa, only to be turned back bv the
| impossible flood on the other side. In
| places in the streets this was already
| breast high, and IL rose higher without
abating one iota of its force.
| Police corstables and Red Cross men
were on duty everywhere; many rescues
were made, risks were gallantlv but not
| always successfully incurred. The party
referred to with great difficulty got from
right up into the hills. Not bridge e.
| NAMED. They then, tired and wet through
| fought their way back and on to the river 8
| mouth. Three hundred houses at least
have been wrecked; those damaged are
| innumerable. Seven dead bodies were
found at one spot; nearly 200, it is feared.
have shared death by drowning. At an
early hour 5000 saadbags mad been piled
| into the broken embankment. Ropes had
been drawn across some of the streets to
enable communication to be made.
Late in the evening the fire alarm
sounded and fire was discovered in con-
| fectionery, which was rapidly famed TO
life by the high wind. Forty marines
| from the German warshlp Kaiser and her
entire fire department worked 10 subdue
the flames, but all to no purpose One
| thousand nine hundred blocks, including
2260 houses and twelve gcdowns were de-
stroyed totally, and ten houses, two police
boxes, one fire. brigade station, four tenn
Piles and one theater. The burnt area COM
prises ten streets. The total damage by
ire was 1000, 900 yen.
On Septem Der l, in Rokugo district, 6
terrible series of earthquakes shook the
country. Nine people were killed there
and more than forty at Hataya, Senya
Takanashi, Yokehori, Yokozawa, Naga
shida, Shimizu and Fujiki, where the dis
aster was especially great. The hills a
Senya cracked. Fires broke out here anC
there. Water gushed out in many place
and rum blines continue.
at Obonal eleven persons were killed
At Rokugo the people killed num Der NOR
than twenty, and the houses overturned
about 1000 A ferry-boat at Hizuma cap
sized and twenty Japs and whites lost thei
|