Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1906-04-26
SAN FRANCISCO.

people were homeless. ana su1erlng 1Or
food, raiment and shelter.
As the flames advanced upon them
the people gathered up few clothes
and some food, and fed to the parks
and cemeteries. In Golden Gate park.
which extends from the ridge or sum-
NIT of the hill of the peninsula upon
which the city is located to the high
and rocky coast of the sea, two-hundred
thousand people were said to have
taken refuge, and as many of these had
but scant clothing and food supplies,
the cold fcgs from the sea sat haid
upon them; which condition was some
what relieved, next day, by the distIi-
button of tents, food and coffee from
the Government Reservation at the
point, and also of food from the ships
in the bay, while the water company
repaired its lines and was able to fur
nish water. The earthquake broke the
water, gas and sewer pipes; the escape
of the gas aided the spread of the
flames; the water pipes emptied them
selves and the fremen had nothing to
work with, while the breaking of the
sewage pipes made an intolerable
stencil in the lower districts of the
town.
The work of destruction continued
and that vast crowd of people were
helpless, while the flames ate up their
all. But they were not down cast. The
accounts state that they sang, joked
with each other and made merry, and
people found crying were ridiculed. 1t
was, however, the levity of desperation,
and was followed by some cases of in
sanity after the excitement--the fire
was under control.
After the fire the city was divided
into three districts and placed under
the martial control of the army, the
militia and the police department. All
men caught robbing the dead were shot
on sight and all able bodied men were
called upon to help bury the dead, re-
pair the broken pipes, and search the
ruins. Some of the large buildings,
shattered by the earthquake, did not
burn, and live people were found in
them, helpless from wounds.
By Saturday relief trains from neigh
boring cities began arriving at Oakland,
across the bay, filed with tents, cloth
ing and provisions, and the great crowds
yet in the parks have, probably, been
made comfortable by this time.
Congress voted million dollars. a
San Francisco rich man named Phelan
gave a million, and several millions
have been raised over the country by
large and small subscriptions for the re-
lief of the sufferers.
Santa Rosa, large town in the hilly
country. thirty miles north of San
Francisco was also destroyed by the
earthquake followed by fire, and the
scenes there resembled those at San
Francisco, but on smaller scale; and
San Jose. about thirty miles south was
injured by the quake and some people
killed, but no fire followed. People
were killed by falling buildings in both
places.
The force of the earthquake seeems
to have been spent on an line running
nearly north and south through the
three towns, though damage was done
in dozen towns, end the shock was
felt, more or less severely, al over the
state and to the Rocky mountains.
At Oakland the State Hospital was
destroyed and some of the insane were
killed, while others who were rescued
were tied to trees At Stanford Uni
versity young man from Bradford.
Pa. a student there, was killed by fall
ing walls. and thousands of incidents
are being told by people who were IN
the city or vicinity at the time.
Some of the steel frames OF the great
modern buildings are yet standing, but
the interiors we're entirely consumed by
the fire. and part Of the brick and stone
veneer fell.
What the fire insurance on the burn
cd part of the city will aggregate is not
yet known. The rates there were low
and the fire insurance on the whole
city is said to amount to $3.50, 900, 600.
The clty will undoubtedly be rebuilt,
but with some precautions against fire,
following an earthquake. Whether or
no it will ever again reach its late pro-
portions remains to be seen. The
present generation will undoubtedly,
be scary of the Peninsula of Peril"
and this great calamity will probably
be followed by boom for Seattle and
other towns on Puget Sound. though
Mt. Rainier and other mountains. in
sight there, have lately been reported
as smoking" No tidal wave" fol-
lowed this convulsion of nature, in
dicating that it was entirely inland.
On Sunday two hundred bodies,
mostly beyond indentification, found in
the district near the Union Iron Works,
were cremated.
At the meeting IN Butler. Sunday
afternoon. $500 was raised for the re-
lief of the sufferers, and the subscrip-
tions since have raised this amount to
over S5, 900 which has been sent to the
Governor Of California.
Eighteen babies were born in Golden
Gate Park from the time of the Earth
quake and fire till Sunday, and eight at
Buena Vista Park At the emergency
hospitals the only thing needed was
bedding
The estimated loss by the fire is 300
with 175 millions of insurance.
A line around the burned district is
about 25 miles long.
On Sunday the people in the Parks
had plenty to eat, train loads of pro-
visions arriving at Oakland, from
whence it was taken across by boats
and distributed
Although the United States Mint was
surrounded by burning buildings for