The Tupelo journal., 1906-05-18

oS3AOSA A. oAo
-News-Scimitar.
San Francisco Earthquake and Fire
A note from an old time citizen
of your county, though leaving it
when only a boy, might be inter-
esting to your readers. | hail
from California, from San Fran
cisco, which recently passed
through the throes Of an earth
quake and was almost wiped off
the map by the most devastating
fire in the history of the world,
unless the fire and birthstone
that rained upon Sodom and Go
morrah destroying all the cities
within the plain" be the excep-
ton.
The extent of the San Fran
cisco fire is six times that of the
we'll known Chicago fire. 1t en-
braces many hundreds of bust
ness blocks and the major por-
ton of it's residence districts to
the extent of four square miles.
Representing a loss of hundreds
of millions of dollars. In less
than two days three hundred
thousand people were made
homeless, penniless and helpless.
The scene of earthquake and fire
is indescrible.
The throes of the quake made
the earth rock back and forth like
a cradle, settling down in it's
normal state by sudden jerks,
gyratory and circular motion.
With magnificent city ediices
of marble, stone and brick shaken
but Of plumb, or left a heap of
ruins, with railroad and street
car road bed torn up or thrown
out of plumb. Shortly after the
quake fire broke out in the city
but the water mains all being
broken up by the earth's convul-
sions the fire companies were
powerless to contend with the
fsmes. 1t looked from the be-
ginning of that fatal Wednesday
morning, April Is, 1906, that the
city was doomed to destruction
and it's inhabitants roasted, hud-
died in it's parks, by the fires
whose angry flames soon convert
ed the fated city into a roaring
furnace. The fires breaking out
at or near the foot Of Market ST.,
the main thoroughfare of the city,
all exit to the Bay cities was cut
off and the street car road beds
radiating from San Francisco to
adjacent country town being SO
impaired that every car and train
was stopped still on track or in
the power house prevented es-
cape in that direction. The ex-
perience was awful. Strong men
wept as if their hearts would
break as they saw relentless
flames going through the center
and stretching to either side of
their proud city with no check to
the angry fires save the thunder
ing dynamite, wrecking buildings,
giving terror to the scene by add
ing fuel to the flames rather than
holding the fires in obeyance.
Imagine. if you can, 300, 900
people sitting above the ashes Of
their burned up fortunes, repre-
senting the tolls Of a life time,
some sorrow stricken as they sat
by the side of new made graves,
into which their dead, unidenti-
fed and uncoffined, were rolled
and covered, for sanitary reasons,
out Of sight. Others by the side
of s~mouldering fires whose en-
bers contained the ashes of their
loved ones caught and pinned be-
meath falling walls and cremated
in their presence powerless to
render assistance. Put this scene
on paper? Impossible. God only
knows the tortures of that afflict-
ed city.
Your goodself, Mr.. Editor, with
your many readers, will be glad
to know that your scribe with his
good wife and the six happy,
bright faced children, were all
graciously preserved. Being en-
gaged1in the newspaper business
in the heart of San Francisco as
editor Of the Pacific Methodist
Advocate, the official organ Of the
M. E: church, south, on the coast.
We lost everything except the
mailing machine and the editor,
my wife's husband, two very
necessary adjuncts in the news
paper business, as you we'll know,
consequently we have not lost a
single issue Of the Advocate since
the fire but come on schedule
time last week, editing the paper
temporarily at 1884 Morton St.,
Alamanda, Cal. AS to the future
San Francisco will be rebuilt.
1T must be done'' is the talk on
all sides and especially by people
who have made their fortunes