The Chanute times. [volume] (Chanute, Kan.) 1897-1913, 1906-05-04
q Letter from San Francisco.

nobody will ever forget, and can never
explain so you can get the sensation
| First of all, just as we were seated for
breakfast (S15), there came rumbl-
ing and trembling. Well the trembl-
ilug soon turned into severe shaking.
TO get the sensation, get into cigar
box and let someone shake yoV right
hard, and have someone throw brick S
on the box 10 the meantime. Before
l could get out of my chair the lamp
Jared off the shelf, and just 10y hap
penstance caught it, And then
couldn't get the light out because
when l would blow the lamp was
IJerked about so 1 couldn't get at it
when | had 1t IN my hands, Finally
/ got it out, but couldn't set 1T down
for the dishes on the table. Anyway,
| let loose and went to look for ma. l
found her bouncing around, trying to
get OUT of bed. Finally she hit the
floor, and staggered just like boat in
| a rough sea. Then to the door. Be-
tween jerks we got the door open, and
all could see was the telephone wires.
They we're going like someone had
one end of the wire trying to make
waves, Then, with all was the sounds
Of breaking glass, falling chimneys
and signs breaking down-all kinds Of
noises Now, just how long that
lasted, I would not say, but it seemed
like about three weeks, and Ed got
nervous prostration in his knees. He
kept calling US to the back dogr--and
we calling him 20 the front-but at
last it ceased. Then we ran out into
the street and could hear the chm
neYs falling as the wave moved ou,
Next you could see smoke coming up
all arOuld ia the business district. SO
we hustled around and went out ~
see the wrecks. First we came to was
d store and the shelves from both
sides had met in the center of the
floor; drug stores with their bottles
came the car barn, and its roof had
Just dropped into the second floor All
cars had stopped just where the quake
caught them, Then we went on down
Valencia street to 18th, and there we
saw the Valencia Hotel, which had
been four stories high, but mashed
and crushed into but one story. The
street had sunk about 6 feet or more
with the water mains broken, which
caused regular stream down through
the ruins. The hotel, SO guest says,
had In it 1G3 rooms, and all were full
He was on the top floor. And after
the wreck he and his wife walked OUT
OF the window into the street and
that not more than 30 people were
saved. While we we're there they
we're digging under The debris trying
TO save those who were still alive.
We went o. down 10 18th aud Mis-
SIGN to see Aunt Bird. Her house
was all open, but no one at home.
Plastering was all over everything.
The sidewalk cracked away from the
house, so on we went to 18th and
Howard. And there for block the
street was a perfect wave, dropping In
places from one to three feet, the
width Of the street. Then looking
down 18th, it was cracked in the
center, and one-half dropped from
one to three feet, about block in
length.
Next we came to was couple of
houses that had been crushed like egg
shells. Three people were in the one
building at the time, but none were
hurt. The floor Of the 18th street
police station was raised right up like
an arch. clear to the ceiling, so some
of the officers said, but they were
either excited or the floor went down
few feet. The dome of the building
was thrown out in the street.
We went on down Folsom street,
and some houses we're without found
alton at all, some had foundation on
just one side, Others just in front, and
so on. ARRIVING at Sth street, we
could see the City Hall, which would
put you in mind Of a capitol building,
on small scale, with the necessary
large dome. Well, the dome looked
like 1t had been to sea-at least, we
could see through it-nothing much
left but frame.
Now came the fire. The streets
we're crowded with people and wagons,
try te save few things. By this
time Ere was raging between LIST and
Sth aud Mission ard Howard. One
residence after another. with the fire.
men helpless. They could do nothing
but blow up buildings and step back
another block until that was burned
to the ground and then back aud to
Twentieth and Mission and North to
the bay. We went on up on RIncon
Hill where we used to live and from