The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1906-05-04
MARK TWAIN FELT SHOCK.
Description Given in 'Roughing IT,
Of What was at the Time 1.-THE
Great Earthquake.

AHe earthquake Ill oan FanclScO re.
calls the description of the shocks
which occurred in that city in 1866
and described by Samuel l.. Clemens
"Mark Twain,'' who was then a re.
porter for the Morning Call. The
extracts below are from "Roughing
IT, Unhappily the earthquake of
that day can no longer be called the
"great" earthquake. Mr.. Clemens
"enjoyed" this experience a short
time after he given up miningin Neva-
da, where he had the famous expert
ence Of being "millionaire" for
ten days. The following is the story
as taken from "Roughing It."
"San Francisco, a truly fascinat-
ing city to live in, is stately and hand
some at fair distance, but close at
hand one notes that the architecture
is mostly old-fashioned, many streets
are made up Of decaying, smok-grim-
ed, wooden houses, and the barren
sand hills, towards the outskirts OBJ
trude themselves too prominently.
Even the kindly climate is sometimes
pleasanter when read about than
when personally experienced, for a
lovely, cloudless sky wears out it's
welcome by and by, and then when the
longed for rain does come it stays
Even the playful earthquake is bet
ter contemplated at a dis
However, there are varying opin-
ions about that.
A month afterwards I enjoyed my
first earthquake. It was one which
was long called the "great" earth
quake, and is doubtless so distinguish
ed till this day. It was just afternoon,
on bright October day. I was COM
ing down 3rd street. The only OBJ
jects in motion >anywhere in sight in
this thickly built and populous quar-
ter were a man in buggy behind me
and a street car vending slowly up
the cross street. Otherwise all was
solitude and Sabbath stiffness. AS
eoRmossrdL. It. when Anc en- cmfy
| turned the corner, around frame
house there was great rattle and
jar, and it occurred to me that here
was an item no doubt fight in
that house. Before [ could turn and
seek the door there came a really ter
rifle shock; the ground seemed to
roll under me in waves, interrupted
by violent jogging up and down,
and there was a heavy grinding noise
as of brick houses rubbing together.
[ fell up against the frame house and
hurt my elbow. I knew what it was,
and from mere ~reportorial instinct,
nothing else, took out my watch and
noted the time Of day; at that NOM
ent third and still severer shock
came, and as I reeled about on the
pavement trying to keep my footing,
[ saw sight! The entire front of n
tall four-story brick building in
third street sprung outward like a
door and fell sprawling across the
street, raising dust like great vol
ume of smoke! And here came the
buggy--overboard went the man, and
in less time than I can tell it the ve-
hicle was distributed in small frag-
ments along three hundred yards of
street. One could have fancied that
somebody had fired charge Of chair
rounds and rags down the thorough
fare. The street car had stopped, the
horses were rearing and plunging, the
passengers were pouring out at both
ends and one fat man had crashed
halfway through glass window on
one side Of the car, got wedged fast
and was squirming and screaming like
an impaled madman. Every door of
every house, as far as the eye could
reach, was vomiting a stream Of hui
man beings; and almost before one
could execute a wink and begin an
other there was massed multitude
Of people. stretching in endless pro-
cession down every street my posi-
ton commanded. Never was solemn
solitude turned into teeming life
quicker. >,...'. IS ".
Of$the wonders wrought by "the
great earthquake" these were all
that came under my eye; but the, trick
IL did elaemhnra owl Po,, ,on1 LIZ .