The National tribune., 1906-04-26
AMERICAS GREATEST
CATASTROPHE
Confined from page I.)

walls and toppled the buildings in
crushing ruins.
The Effort Proved Fruitless-
The fire spread across the broad thor
oughfare and the entire western addi-
ton, which contained the homes of San
Francisco's wealthier class, was DOOM
ed.
Everything worth mentioning except
this residence district was burned over
or on fire in the afternoon. The flames
finished with the business district, ran
south. through what remained of the
tenement district, extended out through
the Mission region, region of cheap
residences, and leaped to Mob Hill.
where stand the great mansions of the
early-day California miIlionaires. Be
fore that time the water supply had
been wholly exhausted.
Suffering From Thirst.
With no water in the mains, the
greatest suffering was from thirst. The
soldiers, disregarding The order not to
let people move about. permitted bucket
brigades TO go forth and bring back
water to relieve the women and the
crying children. To reach the Wat;er il
was necessary sometimes 10 go a mile
TO one of the four reservoirs which top
the hills.
IHS IIit WIS SViiIS oll IN iiIt uiSAil@t
south of them, and at intervals all night
exhausted fire fighters made their way
to the plaza and dropped with the
breath out of them among the huddlcd
people and the bundles of household
goods. The soldiers, who are admins
tering affairs with all the justice OF
judges and all the devotion Of heroes
kept three or four buckets of water
even from the women. for these men,
who kept coming all the night long.
There was a little food also kept by
the soldiers for these emergencies, aud
the Sergeant had in his charge one
precious bottle of whisky, from which
he doled out drinks to those who We're
utterly exhausted.
Over in a corner of the plaza n band
of men and women were praying, and
one fanatic. driven crazy by horror, was
crying ont at the top of his voice, "The
Lord sent il, the Lord!" His hySterical
crying got on The nerves of the soldiers
and bade fair to start a panic among
the women and children, so that tie
Sergeant went over and stopped it by
force.
Thieves Shot Dead.
There is a darker side too. At least
four men have been shot for looting.
There are no wharf rats in the world
worse than those which infest the San
Francisco water front. Terror and the
presence of troops, who have kept most
of these people penned up in Ports
mouth Square with the Chinese, kept
them in bounds on the first day. Then
q policeman shot one of them and this
had a good effect. But to-day they
broke loose and, joining with the res
cuers, began to go through the build
fngs.
In the early afternoon one Of these
cattle came staggering out of wine
-, L. l1al
with champagne bottles and already
half drunk with brandy which he had
found in the wreck. A soldier Of the
18th caught and held him. The orders
of the soldiers are discretionary. The
soldiers in chargs stood him against
the burning building and shot him be-
fore he knew what they were going to
do. Three others were shot in the back
on the run. as they tried to get away
with their plunder. There must have
been great deal more Of this.
Freight Yard Sinks Iato Bay.
Along the wharves the fire tugs, of
whose work little has been heard, have
saved most of the docks. But at last
the Pacific Mail dock has been reached
and Is out of control; and, finally, China
Basin, which was filled in for freight
yard at an expense of millions of dol
lars, sunk into the bay and the water
IS over the tracks. This is one of the
greatest single losses in the whole dis
ester.
Sick and Wounded Taken to the PresIdio
The Preside. the old Spanish camp
of the garrison. was made refuge for
the sick and wounded who could be
gotten thither. This is a level tract at
the mouth of the Golden Gate and be-
low the high bluffs Since the American
possession it has been the headquarters
of the troops on the Pacific Coast, and
IS well-improved military reservation.