The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-04-24

uniform in the hall light thrown up Dy ohe
burning town and the great shadows,
Last night two Of us ventured out on
Van Ness avenue a little late. There came
up the noise of some kind Of a shooting
scrape far down the street. We hurried
in that direction to see what was doing.
An eighteen-year-old boy in a uniform
barred the way, levelled his rife and said
in a peremptory voice
go home.'
We took a course down the block where
an older soldier, more communicate i've
but equally peremptory, Informed us That
we were trihing with our lives, news or no
news.
We've shot about 300 people for one
thing or another" he said. Now, dodge
trouble. Git" That ended the expedition.
THIEVES SHOT DOWN,
They say in the neighborhooi that two
men were shot through the windows OF
their houses because they disobeyed the
| general orders and lit candles. There is a
story, too, Of q woman shot because she
| lighted a fire in her cook stove indoors.
Yesterday, it Is said. three men were lined
up and summarily shot before 10000 people.
One was a tramp caught taking the rings
from a woman who had tainted, another
had stolen a piece of bread from a hungry
child, and the third, little more than a boy,
was robbing tents. But if the troops have
been severe at this time when life is cheap,
and have killed some without due warrant,
they have by the very severity of their
rule saved tens Of thousands. Food is life
now, shelter is life. and fire is death.
Those nights in the oren places are chaos
with an element Of order. In these Places
there are possibilities of hideous crime,
yet for some reason little disorder is re-
ported. Probably The criminals reason
that with people all about and a good deal OF
the vigilante spirit in the ali they would get
shorter shrift from the citizens in the PARKS
than from the soldiers on the streets. The
vicious sneak through the outskirts trying
to rob the deserted houses and ruins.
Until the banks open and business is
resumed-an and we hear that this will take
a month conditions Cannot change very
= much in the resident district, They will 60
on living twenty in a house. whether the
owners and the householder like it or not
and the Government will feed them. Prac-
tically no one has any ready money, and
only ready money goes. The rich are prob
ably worse off in this respect than the people
Of moderate means, for few rich men
keep much ready money in their clothes
depending upon checks. while the moder-
ately well TO do are likely to rave a little
more. Also there is nothing in the way
of food and comfort to he bought, Every
thing is from tho soldiers.
HOUSING THE HOMELESS,
When the criminal element becomes
holder more crime is bound to come.
Disease, unless it takes some virulent form,
will probably he controlled, Sanitary ar
rangements are pretty good already. In
a few days every one will he housed in
some fashion. All to-day the soldiers
went from house to house finding how
much room there is to spar, and assigning
the weaker and more delicate. Not even
the stateliest mansion on Pacific Heights
escapes this. The Red Cross is directing
this work and is doing it with expedition,
Two-thirds of tho city is burned. The
fire swept pretty clean. although it missed
a block here and there. The burned dis
trict ran back from tho ferry about three
miles, but the widest sweep was six miles,
Only residences are left. The whole thing
past and present, is too great to be grasped
Even the survivors cannot realize now whaI
they have been through.