The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-04-28

Per Cent. With Real Estate Security
Many downtown Streets to he Widenod
Great Civic Centre Practically Ger.
ta,n-Old Chinatown to he Given Up 10
Retail Trade-Rain Followed by q
Bright Day-Every One Cheere6
Clearing Up Work Goes on Brlslly.
OAKLAND, Call April 27.-There Was
a rain last night which began about mid
night and lasted until after daylight. When
it ceased there came up a strong northwest
wind, the kind of wind which turned the
fire back on the third day and saved San
Francisco. 1t RACED a number Of blank
walls which had been already moistened
and weakened by the rain; SO that sight
seeing in the ruined city was dangerous.
This, however, did not keep out the
sightseers; and many Of these people were
lucky to come out of it alive. The walls
of the building at stockton and Suffer
streets, right behind the Pacific Union
Club, fell in the early morning. Many
pedestrians and some women In ar auto
mobile had a hard time getting way from
the falling bricks. Later the building ct
the gore Of Market and Geary streets cast
its walls into the street with a great rattle
Just at that time, hundreds were coming
up the street from Oakland. They were
warned in time, and the injuries were
slight-bruises from flying bricks mostly.
Walls fell, also, on Powell, Eddy and
several other downtown streets.
Acting under the instructions OF the
city engineer, Thomas P. Woodward and
three engineers have surveyed the ruined
district in San Francisco to determine the
extent Of the earthquake. Rumors have
been circulated that the city has sunk
appreciably.
The examination showed that this Yves
untrue. In almost every case the disturbed
areas covered made and filed land. The
area of three blocks affected in the Mission
was formerly known as Willows Greek
Swamp. Where ground is solid or hilly, II
did not suffer at all.
DROP IN THE EXODUS.
me eSOuuS iTOn odD rTuflCtSCO S SlOWinB
up. The feeble and the timid nave been
about cleared away, and the crowds waiting
at the railroad offices for transportation and
passes are sensibly smaller. The people are
looking forwardn low to the time a few weeks
ahead, when passenger traffic shah q
turned the other way; when artisans, archi-
tects and business men will be coming on
to help in building the new city. Il
The air is full of projects. Herbert Law;
a capitalist who had prepared to lease the
Fairmount Hotel and build an annex to 1t
just before the fire. ven East in a hurry
two days ago. 1t Is said that he went after
a conference Of men Of money to lay a pro-
posal before Congress. This Is nothing else
than a request Of a Government loan of
$lOO, 900 900 at 2 per cent. interest to be used
in rebuilding and to supplement the insur-
ance payments. According to the plan, the
loan is to run for twenty-five years and 70
be secured by city real estate.
Talk is all Of the greater plans for 70
building the city. Whether the Burnham
plans are accepted or not, the junction Of
Hayes, Market, Eighth and Van Mess
avenue, where stand the RUNE OF the city
hall, will probably be made the civic centre
OF the town, the place Of the public build
ings and Of the Carnegie Iibrary-k the
city pockets its pride and accepts Mr.. Car
negie's old gift. He offered it four years
ago, but labor union influence in politics
has kept the city from accepting formally.
Another project is to widen Van Ness
avenue, making it a great boulevard. Van
Ness avenue is already the widest street in
the city. Market street must be left
about as it Is, since on 1t stand a lot Of great
and expensive steel structure buildings
which stood the fire and will not have to
be rebuilt. Other streets of the down
town district which were laid out In the
early days and are far too narrow for o
modern city will be widened by shaving
of several feet from the property on each
side. The Burnham plans. II adopted, will
change the course Of q great many streets,
but it Is felt that Mr.. Durham will have
to out his coat to fit his cloth: for In the
present state Of affairs II would be O great
hardship TO tear down n move buildings
which escaped the fire. Mr.. Burnham's
pride was the terracing Of the Western Ad.
dition, but the Western Addition stands
untouched.
WHITES IN OLD
Certainly the Chinatown area will be APP
propriated to the uses Of the whites. Most
likely 1t viii become a district Of retail
stores. Its old boundary, beyond which
it was never permitted to move down
town, was at st. Mary's Church. Between
the church and the district OF art stores
and fine dry goods stores there lay before
the fire only two blocks-those two known
locally as Hell's Half Acre. The stores
| will absorb the half acre and move on up
| to Chinatown.
, The original plan to move all the Chiness
out to Hunters Point, six miles away,
may fail. A committee of Chinese mer.