The Greeley tribune., 1906-04-26
EYE WITNESS
EDWIN FREEMAN DESCRIBES
SCENES IN FRISCO
Made His Way Into the Burning
City Shortly After Great
Shock-Had Thrilling
Experiences

A letter, from which the follow
ing are extracts, has been received
here by Mr.. and Mrs. J. NJ. Freeman
from their son, Edwin Freeman, of
San Francisco, is the first authentic
report received here since the great
earthquake.
Mr.. Freeman lives at San Bruno,
fourteen miles from the heart of the
stricken city, but made his way into
the burning district the morning of
the earthquake. After the expert
ences recorded he made his way with
an army OF 100, 900 refugees back to-
ward Bruno Park, his home, and was
lucky enough to be taken up by an
automobile and hurried back as he
was hurried to the burning city.
After reaching home Mr.. Freeman,
with his neighbors, set about doing
all they could to make the refugees
comfortable, feeding and caring for
as many as they could accommodate,
making living by fishing and dig
ging CLANS.
Only such parts of the letter as
refer strictly to family matters have
been omitted:
San Francisco, April 10, 1906.
"My Dear Parents and All:
while the Lord has spared us
and given moments of safety and life
within us to tell of the fateful story
and calamity that has just befallen
US, l will, with what strength and
ability there is in me, picture out to
you the exact scenes. On the fate
full morning, of Wednesday, April
IS, at the hour of 5:l3 in the morn
ing found US as usual" thank the
Lord''-in our tents on our suburban
property that we had purchased,
camping it out for the summer. At
S O'Clock we (Mrs. Freeman and y
were awake and at that fateful
moment 1 speak of, l3 minutes after,
came what we all thought our last,
the earth started to shake and roar
and everything in and about US
started to tremble. Then came still
worse shocks and it seemed as
though the whole earth had opened
up to envelope us into her tomb.
After succeeding in climbing out of
bed, in which we had already gotten
good start, we landed at the door,
still to behold the same beautiful
blue sky above us and Gods green
velvet covered foot stool beneath.
All was serene again. But the shock
had done it's awful job. To the
right, to the left, and in fact, all
around us we looked only to see what
disaster laid in its awful path. All
chimneys down, windows demol-
ished, people flocking here and there
like so many wild demons, spreading
the news. But only few moments
elapsed until our attention was cal
led towards the city of San Fran
cisco, lying back behind the hills.
Mightier and mightier rose the great
black smoking clouds, to tell us that
San Francisco had at last been
caught in the death trap that had
always been predicted and feared.
Another and another small trem-
bling and moving of the earth came
TO remind us of greater calamlcy
than had Just passed. But what
could one do? Absolutely nothing.
We were all Gods children ana at
his mercy and our prayers were an
swered and we were saved.
$50 great was my anxiety TO see
tbe passing of greater San Francisco
into oblivion that l started by 1oot
nm along the Southern Pacific rail-
road. Instead of keeping along in
its regular straight course l had TO
be guided by its figure S, for the
earthquake had sent 1t out OF lts
REGULAR course all along. Along size
of the road bed at intervals were
cracks in the earth that couio
safely squeeze along ID.
II continued on my railroad tle
walking, gazing here and there
taxing in all the sights and horrors
to meet my eyes. Houses telescopea,
dished and in total wrecks. At
nlaces along enroute to the city one
could enter into the second story
from the street, where the houses
had sunk. But as l tramped on