The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1904-06-24

NOTABLE DISASTERS.
The Burning OF the slocum One of the
Most Reartrending.

The Burning OF the slocum One of tn,
Most Reartrenuing.
The burning OF the steamer Genera
Slocum, on last Wednesday morning
with a loss Of probably more than so,
lives, Is ong OF the most heartrendinI
disasters Of recent times. The guestI
OF the big steamer we're nearly al
children and women, going upon theil
annual Sunday school picnic.
Such catastrophe cannot fail te
recall the recent holocaust in Chicago
when at a matinee on the last day ol
1908, the Iroquois theatre, just com
pleted, was seized by the fire field an6
in less than thirty minutes more thar
600 people, largely women and chill
dren, were burned to death, and more
than 400 others were manned for life.
Such disasters call to mind the
theatre fire OF Richmond, Va, in
1911: the burning OF the Conways.
brook playhouse in 1876, and the fiery
destruction OF the Paris theatre a few
years ago. in which the leading actress
and many others lost their lives.
While such cata strophes are horrible
to contemplate they do not approach
the horror of other disasters by lire,
flood and volcanic eruption.
All will recall the eruption of Vesu-
yius In A. d. 10, which buried in sand
and lava Pompeii, Herculaneum and
Stablae. The loss of life was $50, 900
and the cities have never been rebuilt.
Lisbon, the capital OF Portugal, suf-
fered an earthquake in 1855, which
left the city in ruins, and took go, 900
lives.
Caracas, the capital of Venezuela,
lost $4,000 lives from an earthquake
in 1912.
Manila, Philippine Islands, was Wis
tied by an earthquake in June, 1868,
causing loss of nearly 10, 900 lives.
Certainly the most destructive fire
in the history Of this country, If not
in the world, was the Chicago fire OF
October, i6Ii. Beginning in barn
in DeKoven street, it spread with
lightning rapidity, and ragged for two
days and nights. 1t swept over 2,l0C
acres, destroying 1880 buildings
The exact number Of the deaths has
never been ascertained, but it went
into the hundreds; 10000 people
one-tlfth of the entire population
were left homeless, and property
worth $4,000, ,O00-one- third of the
value Of the entire city-was Destroy
ed by this fire.
Boston had fire in 1872, which de,
stroyed so acres Of the business sec
tion at less of.$75,OOO, 900.
The Jobnstown, Pa, flood in May,
1889, was a frightful disaster. The
dam across South Fork, a branch oi
the Conemaugh river, - miles east OF
JOhnstown, broke, releasing Core
maugh Lake, whose waters thundered
down the valley, engulfed Johnstown
Saad neigh boriI ilages, causing a
llslss q sfui U00,Ouo.
Galveston,
Tex, was the scene bf great flood.
a, West: Indian hurricane, with a
velocity Of 135 miles an hour, swep
over the city and flooded the streets,
and in less than five hours DESTROYED
5000 lives and property valued at
SIS 100000.
More recent still was the eruption
OF Mont Pelee on the Island of Mar.
Unique, French West Indies. On
May the Stb, 1902, the mountains
belched forth and overwhelmed tne
town of st. Pierre as its base with
sand and laya which oyerran The sur
rounding country, and destroyed 80
600 people.
On August Sth, 1902, Mt. Pelee
erupted again and $500 lives were
lost.
Every one recalls the recent cyclone
of Gainesville, Ga, and the burning
of the Park Avenue Hotel in New
York, each disaster causing so much
suffering and the loss Of life, in the
latter 157.