The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-01-20
THE HOWLA1ID DRY GOODS CO.

15,00O persons were buried beneath the wreckage Of their homes.
 This time there was only an in- terya1 of fifty years before the next blow. It fell upon Ca1abria, where more lives to the square mile have god than in any other region even of Italy. Most Of the loss of life on this occasion was due to tidal wave from the Adriattcs which over whelmed one entire city beneath 1t. drowning nearly 10000.
 December 5. 1456, just as the peo- pie of Naples were stirring abroad in the morning, the ground beneath their feet was suddenly shaken s'like the waves of the sea- the chronicler says. the buildings fell, and after an- other shock the sea rose into the streets, submerging half the city, so that 10000 persons per1shed there
 City Rebuilt.
 The people of Naples took no warning. however, and their city was rebuilt again when, on the SUth of July, 1926, the catastrophe was re- peated on a still larger scale The entire countryside was laid waste. no less than 80 towns and villages being wiped out of existence and at least TO .00O lives paid the cost.
 Twelve years laters on March 27, 1888, CaIabria was snnitten again. On this occasion the disaster was so widespread that not a single his- torian so far as known. makes any real attempt to estimate the loss of life but it Is known to have run up into the thousands.
 Not in Italy proper. but across the Adriatic in the ancient Italian and now Dalmatian city of Ragusa4 the next blow fell on April 8, 1867. lay ing the city flat and taking 5000 lives.
 The 17th century was a memor- able one for Italy, as far as earth quakes go, for only five years after tf1a destruction of Ragusa, Rfrnini met the same fate in an earthquake that ranged also nearly the whole length of the peninsula, but concen- trated it's fury on that city, where 1,500 were killed.
 Catania was destroyed for the sec ond time in a more terrible disaster than the first in September of the following year, 1893. Of the city and it's IS, 900 inhabitants, 1t is recorded, not so much as 8 trace remained when the earth had qnieted and the sea had recfded from it's fury. Nor was this disaster confined to Catania. for the whole Sici1ian coast felt it's weight. Probably, in the magnitude of destruction, and, possibly, in the loss of life, this was the greatest and most terrible earthquake in the hfs- tory of the world. More than fifty towns and villages were thrown in ruins.
 The New Century.
 The new century brought no rest nor peace to Italy. for in l703, on February 2, Aquila was laid waste by earthquake and fire, and 5000 lives were lost, nore than half the estimated population of the town.
 The loss of lives~in medieval times, 1t might be well to explain here. was undoubtedly large in proportion to the actual physical magnitude of the upheava1, due to the methods of building Italian towns in those days were built on the high hills or in narrow passes, walled in and hudd1ed closely about the citadel for protec- ton against rowing bands. The streets were far narrower and the stone houses were high. As a. result, the chances of any great percentage of the people escaping from the oXerthrqw of their. homes were small In close succession after the de- struction of Aqui1a came the earth quake of Abruzzi, on the third o1 ] November. 17O6, with the toll of 15.-