Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-05-03
STANFORD FOREVER.
WESTERN UNIVERSITY TO OPEN
SEPTEMBER I WITH BETTER
FACILITIES
To be Greater Than Everstudents
Are LoyaI-Bert Mahon Tells Of His
Earthquake Experiences and the Fu-
ture Of Alma Mater.


ture of Alma Mater.
LELAND Stanford university will
open for school work September 1 with
almost the same equipment for prac-
teal work and with nearly as many
students as ever" said Bert Mahon, a
student at that institution, who ar
rived home from Palo Alto Sunday.
There is an impression that Stan
ford university is Dead" Mr.. Mahon
continued" but it is decidedly living
and the same spirit that will cause
San Francisco to rise in renewed and
redoubled glory over it's now bruised
and SCARED site, will make Stanford
greater, grander and more glorious
than 1t ever was BEFORE"
When asked to tell his experience in
the earthquake Mr.. Mahon said:
Since the shock have visited San
Francisco, San Jose, Oakland nd Nap
pa, and from all that I saw am con-
WINGED that the shock was most Sc
we're, or at least fully as severe, in and
around Palo Alto. OF course we were
spared the terrible visitation of fire
and the damage was not great for that
reason.
well, the shock came, if l remem-
Der right, at 5:14 o'clock Wednesday
morning The first that remember
was trying to sit up in bed, but the
bed was rocking SO that this was al
most impossible. I looked from my
window and saw that big stones were
raining dowh from the sky.
~ -F?ne Terrible Roaring.
vi afterwards found out that these
stones were from big chimney. that
passed through my room on it's way to
the roof. AS best 1 could I staggered
to my roommate's bed and grasped
him by the foot. The terrible roaring,
that was the worst of it all l think
any one who experienced this shock
will tell you that it was the roaring
that was the most terrifying and I'M
nerving.
When had aroused my roommate,
opened the door and ran to the end
of the hall, jumping from the second
story window to the ground, with my
roommate close second. l never will
be positive whether my mate WAS
asleep until called him or not, bu.
am almost certain. he was, though he
claims he was not. At any rate until
caught hold of him he lay there as
quiet as If he were asleep, but after l
aroused him I never say anyone move
more quickly
Men in Night Clothes.
"By this time nearly all Of the SEQ
men in the hall where roomed, were
ont IN f1n
All OF us in our night clothes. J saw
the Memorial church fall, amidst great
clouds of dust and plaster. Other
buildings fell and it looked for mo.
ment as though the whole university
had been destroyed. Big strong men,
men who had been students for two or
three years especially, sat down and
Wept, cried like babies, over the de.
struction of their Alma Mater.
Soon, however, something ever
more tragic was discovered. Some of
the fellows were missing. Then we
started to look for them. Upon search
ing we discovered that a chimney
which went up through the middle of
the building had fallen and it's effect
In falling was one of the most peculiar
things ever say. This chimney started
from big fire place in the lobby and
ran up through the three floors above
this TO the roof. 1t passed through a
room on each floor, going through the
room right across the hall from mine.
on our floor.
When the chimney fell it went
through the roof took out each one of
these rooms as clean as if it had been
done with saw, cut hole through
the lobby floor just the size and shape
of the rooms above and ended it's wild
career only in the cellar. AS an evil
dence of what clean execution this fall
did, while the floors of all the rooms
were taken out, mirrors were left hang.
ing on the walls, without even crack
in them.
Hanna is Killed.
Each one of these three rooms that
were taken out, was occupied by. two
men. All six went to the bottom. Here
1t was that young Julian Hanna met
his death. Erhe other men stuck to
their beds and were saved, but Hanna
had started to leave the room when
the floor abrge him gave away. He
floor
"Hanna's n pm mate. Framley, was
seriously injYkd, but not fatally, l be.
lieve. The d n men were unframed
How it was aunsible for the men in the the
fourth floor, ! 4. instance, to fall down
four stories II the basement and still
remain uninTured in all that pile OF
dahruc T