The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1906-04-23
TELLS AWFUL TALE
Of THE DISASTER
Climbed Over Dead Bodies of
Victims in Efforts to
Make Escape.
WOMAN OF ERIE, Pa, GIVES
VERY GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION
People, Driven Insane Through
Fear, Knew Not What
to Do.

| DENVER, April 22-Every incoming
| train from tho west brings refugees from
| San Francisco. who tell narrowing stories
| of their experiences and give graphic de-
scriptions of the horrors that followed tho
| earthquake and fire.
Worn by the exposure, hardships and
| terrors of a two days effort to escape
| from the stricken city. Mrs. D. NJ. John
| son OF Utica, n. Y, and Miss Martha
| Stibbals of Erie. Pa, passed through Den
yer today on their way home.
Ceiling Fell Down.
Tho first that we knew of the earth
] quake was when we were awakened In our
room at the Randolph hotel Wednesday
morning by a terrific shaking, which
| broke loose fragments of the ceiling" said
| Miss Stibbals.
There followed tremendous shock
which shook the building and side walls
| and tossed 1t about with something like
a spiral motion. When we reached the
street people were running hither and
| thither.
Some ono passing advised us to get on
! as high ground as possible, and we started
walking as fast as possible to the high
peaks back OF the city
| Hundreds Of Fires.
Fire was breaking out in hundreds Of
| places over the city and the streets were
| becoming crowded with hurrying refugees
| Where they were unable to procure horses,
| men and women had harnessed them
selves TO carriages and were drawing their
belongings to places OF safety. AS we
| where wealthy people live We saw auto
mobiles drawn up and loaded down before
houses Their owners remained rem ned until the
| flames came too near and then getting
| into the machines, made for the hills
$4,000 for Hire of Auto.
1--WE saw one man pay $1,000 for an auto
mobile in which to take his family to a
| place OF safety.
OF Alta plaza. People half clad. unfcd.
crowded The ground Bsneath lay tho
| IT presented a scene indeScribablc.
Sleepless With Fear.
I'VE passed the night sleepless. with a
| panic-stricken multitude. In the morning
| (Thursday we started toward the harbor,
| with the assistance OF soldiers from the
| Preside, who had already been on duty
| twenty-four hours. We got to the wharf
and hoped to get launch to Oakland.
We were unable to do so; but we were
| himself In deep grief because his mother
had been crushed to death in their little
ishment we had had. excepting a few
| crackers. in twenty-four hours
The skipper saw tho Government boat
| coming in the bay and said II we could
reach the Preside wharf we could escape
| on tho Government boat.
I'VE therefore hurried toward tho Pre-
| sido greatly impeded by assures which
stretched long distances and around
| which We had to make our way, At the
Preside we were taken on board with
were safe in Oakland.
Climbed Over the Dead
|
way around flaming debris and went over
| almost insurmountable obstacles to get
out OF San Francisco" said c., c. Ken
| dali. a retired Omaha capitalist upon
his arrival here last night. Il arrived In
| San Francisco tho night previous TO the
earthquake was awakened about 6l5
| my bed in the Palace annex. | rushed
10 tho window and looked out The house
was reellng and tumbling like playthings,
hurried on clothing and ran into the
street. Here saw many dead and the
| debris was piled up along Market street
Il went TO the office OF the Palace no
| were rushing about cFdzed and frantic
in their night clothes; The nrst shock
lasted only twenty eight seconds, but 1t
| seemed TO me two hours.
Second Shock Came.
"A few minutes after l reached tho
Palace hotel Office the second shock came
| II was light compared with the first but
| IL brought TO the ground many of tho
buildings that the first shock had un-
| settled.
| "Fires were breaking out in every d.
| rection. Market street had sunk at least
| four feet. / started for the ferry 1t is
| only q few blocks from the Palace An
| mex to the ferry but 1t took me from
a. IN. until l0:15 to cover tho space,
| Men and women fought about the en-
trance OF the ferry like a band OF In
| furlated animals
Cannot Remember.
ct made my escape-I do not remember
them. When the boat pulled over the
bay the smoke and flame rose sky-hlgh
and the roar of falling buildings and the
| cries of the people rent the air"
The first / remember OF tho earth
quake was finding myself In tho middle
bits OF furniture, l had been thrown"
said c. F. Burgner a business man OF
| Oscoola Wis With his wife and two
daughters he had registered at the st
! Francis hotel in San Francisco the night
before the disaster.
Escaped to Oakland
.cWIth my family 1 rushed downstairs
We pushed our way through the crowded
streets where every one was hurrying
trunks behind them. Bricks. stones and
Ali sorts of debris filled the roadway and
we had a difficult time making our way
Ia the water front. An electric launch
was moored there and on II We escaped
to Oakland.
under the timbers OF the collapsed build
| inus Were pitiful to hear and the worst
OF It was that nothing could be done to
save them.
TAKES CHEERFUL VIEW.