Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1906-04-19
AnAnE PHENOMENON.
Earthquakes Few and Far Betweeu In
the United states.

\ RARE PHENOMENON
Earthquake rev ana Far Betwesu In
the United states.
Earthquakes in the United States have
been Of comparatively rare occurrence, 50
far as extensive destruction OF life and
property have been involved The present
disaster Is the fourth In the record OF Cali
fornia- The first occurred in 1855 the
second in 1865, the third on April 10, 1892
The first two were particularly sharp in
San Francisco, leaving the residents a
feeling Of Insecurity that required the pass
ing Of two decades TO wear away. That
which occurred fourteen years ago, lack
ing one day, almost destroyed the town
Of Nacaville, seventy miles northwest OF
San Francisco. There was no loss Of life,
but the property damage was great. That
there was no loss of life was certainly
almost miraculous. The great disturbance
of 1858, I'm which in the interior number
of lives were lost, was far less terrifying,
Dumb animals seemed especially suscept-
ible to the horrors of the night, and cattle
were found today miles away from their
owners premises having stampeded In
terror as the swaying earth trembled be-
meath their feet.
1t is a remarkable fact that I'm the earth
quake OF 1868, Mount st. Helena. which is
just north of Vacaville, the town which
suffered so severely in 1902 was rent
asunder and for days thereafter a sulphur
cloud hung over its brow. When It cleared
away there were two peaks where there
had been one before.
The most extensive and destructive earth
quake in the central section of the country
was that which destroyed New Madrid,
Mo-, below st. Louis, in 1911. The shock
was felt from Pittsburg through Ohio val
ley to New Madrid over a region of
country 800 miles in length, from the mouth
Of the Ohio to that of st. Francis, the
ground rose and sank in great undulations,
and lakes were formed and drained again.
The central point of violence in this re-
markable earthquake was thought to be
near the Little Prairie, twenty-five miles
below New Madrid The first shock was
felt on the night OF December l6, and was
repeated at intervals, with decreasing
severity, until the middle of February
Every town in Ohio and Mississippi was
severely shaken up, the water of the river,
which the day before was tolerably clear,
being rather low, changed to a reddish
! hue, and became thick with mud thrown
up from the bottom, while the surface.
dashed vehemcntly by the CONFUSION Of
the earth beneath, was covered with foam,
| which, gathering into masses the size Of
| a barrel foated along on the trembling
surface. The earth on the shores opened
| in wide assures and, closing again, threw
| the sand, mud and water in huge jets
higher than the house tops. The atmos-
phere was filled with a thick vapor gas
| to which the light impaired purple tinge
| From the temporary check to the current
| by the heaving up of the bottoms, the
sinking of the banks and sandbars into
| the bed of the stream, the river rose in
few minutes five or six feet and, impatient
| of the restraint again rushed forward with
redoubled impetuosity, hurTying along the
boats now set loose by panic-stricken
| boatmen, as in less danger on the water
than at shore, where the banks threatened
| every moment to destroy them by falling
earth, or carry them down in the vortex
of sinking masses. Many boats were over
whelmed in this manner and the crews
persisted with them Numerous boats were
wrecked on the snags and old trees thrown
up from the bottom Of the river, where
they had quietly rested for ages; while
others were sunk or stranded on the sand
bars or islands.
/
It is an interesting coincidence that ut
this precise period the first steamboat voy-
age ever made in western waters added the
novelty of its occurrence to the commissions
| Of nature in this region. The name of the
steamboat was the New Orleans, com
manded by Mr. Roosevelt. In drifting down
the river, suddenly they found the weather
| oppressively hot, the air misty still and
dull, and though the sun was visible, like
an immense and glowing ball of copper, his
rays hardly shed more than mournful
| twilight on the surface of the water. Even
! ing drew nigh, and with it some indications
Of what was passing around them became
! evident, for they ever and anon heard a
rushing sound and violent splash, and
finally saw large portions of the shore tear
ing away from the land and lapsing into
the watery abyss.
The second day on the river the sun rose
the same dim ball Of fire. and the air was
thick, heavy. oppressive, as before. The
| portentous signs of this terrible natural
CONFUSION increased. Alarmed and con-
/ fused the pilot affirmed he was lost, as he
found the channel everywhere altered, and
where he had hitherto known deep waters
he found huge trees with their roots turned
upward. The trees that still remained on
/ the SHORES were seen WAVING anu HOuuihB
without a wind.
| The Adventures had, of course, no course
| but to continue their route as best they
could but toward evening they were at a
! loss for a place of shelter. They had usually
! brought to, under the shore, but at all
! points they saw the high banks disappear
! ing. large island in mid-channel which
had been known by the pilot was sought
/ for in vain, and thousands OF acres consti-
tuting the surrounding country were found
! 10 be swallowed up, with their gigantic
! growth Of forest and cane. About noon Of
the next day the first steamboat reached
| New Madrid.
Here the inhabitants were in the grea lest
! CONSERVATION and distress. Part of the
population had fed for their lives TO the
! higher ground.
After shaking the valley of the Missis-
! sippi to it's center the earthquake vibrated
along the courses of the rivers and valleys
| and died away along the shores of the At
lantic In the region of its greatest force,
| the pending and tremendous elemental
strife which finally ensued, the current OF
the Mississippi was driven back from its
source with appalling velocity for several
hours I'm consequence Of an elevation of its