Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1906-05-31
Mark rwain,s Earthquake.

Mark Twain tells of an earthquake he
witnessed in San Francisco many years
ago. He describes the affair in "Roughing
It, 1T was just after noon on a bright
October day. / was coming down Third
street. The only objects in motion any
where in sight in that thickly built and
poplllojS quarter were a man in "A buggy
behind me and a street car vending slow
~ up a cross street. Otherwise all was
solitude and a sabbath stiffness. AS
turned a corner around "A frame house
tii"rc was a rattle and jar. and i, occurred
10 me that here WAS an 'item'-no doubt u
fight IL that house. Before I could turn
and seek the door there came a really
terrific shock. the ground seemed to roll
under me- in waves. Interrupted by II vio-
lent jogging up and down. ard there was II
heavy grinding noise, as of brick houses
rubbing together. ! fell up against the
frame hous" and hurt by elbow. l knew
what X was now and. from mere report
orial instinct. nothing else. took out my
watch ana rotcd the time of day. at that
moment "A third and still scvcrer shock
came. ard as ] reclel about on the pave
men! trying to keep my footing | saw "A
sight.
Tho entire front of a tail. four-s:ory
brick building in Third street sprung out
ward Xix. a door and fell s%prawling across
The street, raising Il dust like a great vol
u,n of smoke. And here came the buggy
~ 'NaAt' "'tit WV nan .LIld, III i'SS IlIIl''
than can tel ii. the vehicle was dis
tributed in small fragments along 300
yards of street. One could have fancied
that somebody had fired a charge of chair
rounds and rags down the thoroughfare.
The street car had stopped, the horses
were rearing and plunginS. the passeu-
gers were pouring out at both ends and
one fat man had crashed half way through
"A glass window on oi,e side of the car, got
WedScd fast and was SQuirlning and
screaming like an iinpanci"d mailman.
Every door of every house as far as tn
eye could reach was vomiting a stream of
human, beings. ard almost before one
could execute a wink and begin another
there was "A massed multitude of people
stretching in endless procession down
every street my position commanded.
Never WAS solemn solitude turned irto
tceminS life quicker.
The curiositics of tho earthquake were
simply endless. Gentlemen and ladies' who
were sick. or were taking a %siesta. or had
dissipated till "A late hour and were max
ing up lost sleep. thronged into the streets
in al! sorts of queer apparel and some
without any at all. One woman, who had
been washing a naked child. ran down the
street holding it by the ankles. as If il had
been "A dressed turkey. Prominent citi-
Gems. who were supposed to keep the sab
bath strictly. rushed out of saloons in their
shirt sleeves. with billiard cues in their
hands. Dozens of men with nccks swathed
in napkins rushed from barber shops, lath-
cred to the eyes. or with one check clean
shaved and the other still bearing a hairy
stubble.
"A crack loo feet long saped open six
inches wide in the middle of one street
and then Shut together again with such
force as TO ridge W the meeting earth like
A slender grave. A lady sitting I'm her
rocking and quaking parlor saw the wall
part at the c"iling, open and shut twice.
Xix. a mouth, and then drop the end of Il
brick on the floor. like a tooth. She was
4 woman easily disguised with foolishness
and she arose and went out of there. Bus
pended pictures were thrown down, but
oftcncr still they were whirled completely
around with their faces to the wall. Thou
sands of people We're made so scasick h.
the rolling and pitching of floors and
streets that they were weak and bcd-rid-
den for hours and some few even for days
afterWard.