The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1900-09-22
cATAsfRopHEs IN AMERICA.
GakestOn's Calamity is by Far the Most
Serious.

1t is a popularity of America that
its catastrophes as we'll as its bless
ings are on a large scale. The ten
dency. too, in both Is toward the
increase. Along until 1856. when a
considerable part of Charleston vas
wrecked. the larger United States
cities were considered to be exempt
from serious danger from earthquakes.
although many towns in California
ard other parts of the Pacific coast
had been d~isaStrouslv visited by then
earlier than that date. Until 1880.
when Louisville was assaulted, and
| lSg6. when St. Louis had a far more
serious visitation. tornadOes We're not
looked TO among the calamities to
which the most important American
centers were subject.
Galveston's calamity, however. is
by far the most serious by which any
important city in the United States
has ever been afflicted. In property
loss. which is set at from $50, 000, 00O
to $50, 900, 900, the damage is below
that suffered by Boston $3.50, 000, 600
in its fire in 1892, or in Chicago in lis
contiagration a year earlier 1880, 0O0-
0O0), but its loss in life is much
greater. The extent of the obstruction
of life in Galveston is placed a 5000
or 5000 by the latest conservative esti-
mates. but this less. as well as in
property, can not be known. even
approximately. for Il week Or two yet.
In Boston the loss of life was put at
sixty or seventy, and in Chicago at
POO. The destruction of life at the
JOhnstown i%nundation in 1889, which
headed the list in American calamities
TO that time, was PIP. but Galveston's
total will undoubtedly far surpass that
figure.
OF course hurricanes like that which
has just overwhelmed Galveston have
often occurred on the coasts IF the
United States. Tornadoes like that
which destroyed 400 lives and $40. 600
900 of property in St. Louis four
years ago are no new visitations for
this country. From the earliest ages
of American settlement both sorts of
c~atastrOphes have occurred, and traces
f them as having come previously
were found by some of the first ex-
plorers along the coasts and through
the interior of the country. Obviously
in the days of sparse population Or
of no population these hurricanes,
tidal waves and tornadOes inflicted
comparatively little destruction, and
attracted little or no attention. 1t is
when population and property ac-
cumulate that the calamitous effects
of the warefare of natures elemental
forces become manifest. 1t is the
great loss of life, which naturally has
a more depressing effect on a COM
munity than mere loss of property,
that makes the Galveston visitation
particularly disastrous. BY an Omin-
the census report of Cal
veston's very flattering increase of 30
per cent in population in the decade,
which brought its total up to a fraction
less than $4,000, came only a few day 5
before the calamity which has reduced
its population to the extent of several
Galveston has made a
solid growth. however. 1t is the most
point or the gulf coast o
the United States except New Orleans.
The city which has been largely wiped
out by the regent catastrophe will be
replaced by a new Galveston, which
will tie greater and more beautiful
than the old.-Globe-De,locrat