The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1906-04-27
EMERGENCY PROMPTLY MET
San Francisco Disaster Mar
Shaled Without Effort.
Congress Appropriates $780,
900 for Relief of City---U.
S. Mint Saved.

III lJVE has, IL Deell Cdiieu vi W lace
an emergency of any sort. The dis
aster at San Francisco however, has
proved an emergency of the first
magnitude and it is a satisfaction
to be able to report that the army
has met it without apparent effort.
The immensely of the loss at San
Francisco from fire and earthquake
has dwarfted everything else and
the whole attention of most of De-
partments has been given to sending
and receiving news. hurrying for
ward relief and authorizing the Of
ficers on the spot to make all sorts
of provisions to meet the necessities
of the case.
Secretary Taft said privately that
he was glad they had an officer on the
ground who came to the front like
General Funston and did things first
and asked authority afterward.
Congress sunk all differences of par
ty in passing the emergency appro-
priation bill giving 81, 100000 to be
Immediately available for the relief
work. This bill was passed in rec
ord time and sent to the President,
receiving his signature all within
the space of six hours. The only
amendment made to it was the next
day when Senator Morgan introduc-
ed another resolution making it
clear that the money was available
for the purchase of medical supplies
as well as food.
Photographers have been on duty
constantly at the War and Navy De-
partments as in the days of the
Spanish war, and the Secretaries of
War and Navy and of Commerce
and Labor have been in touch with
the Departments over the phone at
all hours. The Government for
once has been effectively busy and
harmonious orders have been flash
ed from Washington calling on the
quartermasters and commisSaries of
the various army and naval posts
most closely in touch with San Fran
cisco to forward supplies as fast as
they could be collected. 1t has been
realized that the promptest relief
was the most effective and the first
train of government supplies was
expected to reach San Francisco on
Thursday night.
The cost of the disaster to the
government will be enormous. The
destruction in military and naval
stores in and around San Francisco
alone will be 81, 100000. In addition
to that the damage to buildings and
equipment must be counted, and
there are S7,OO0,OOO worth Of gov
eminent buildings within the area
of the disturbance. The relief work
including the appropriation from
Congress will also amount into the
millions.
The government has decided that
there should be a representative of
the administration on the spot and
Secretary Metcalf has accordingly
been selected and started for Cali
fornia on Friday night. His selec-
ton was the natural one as the De-
partment of Commerce and Labor is
already closely in touch, with the
situation. 1t has ordered the Fish
Commission Steamer Albatross and
all the available tenders of the Light
House Service to the aid of the suf-
ferers. Secretary Metcalf's home
is in Oakland and while he is accom-
panied in Washington by Mrs. Met
calf, he has a son and sister in the
stricken city from whom he has re-
ceived no news since the disaster.
The Secretary has borne up gamely
under the personal distress that the
news has caused him, and although
he sent private messages and did all
he could on the side to get track Of
his boy, he gave his first attention
to the work of relief and let family
matters come after.
Secretary Metcalf was preceded
West few hours by Representative
julius Kahn, of San Francisco, who
was suffering peculiar tortures from
the news. Less than 48 hours be-
fore the shock, Mr.. Kahn received a
telegram from San Francisco saying:
Mother and son doing WE'LL" and
from that time the father has been
able to hear nothing Of either of
them. He has haunted the tele-
graph and newspaper offices in