The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1920-12-09

e. rating, winch was followed in a fey
"a minutes by the complete saturation o
at the atmosphere with sulphurous va
r pors, causing total darkness.
The screams of the frightened nhab
, itants running to and fro, not knowing
what to do or where to go, the cries o1
the fowls and beasts of every species
lr the cracking of the trees falling anC
v the roaring of the Mississippi, the cur
e rent Of which was retarded few min,
utes, owing, is it is supposed. to the
interruption in its bed, forced a scene
u truly horrible.
4 From that time until about sunrise a
4 number of lighter shocks ocurred. at
Y which time one still more violent than
Il the first took place, and the same ac-
j compartments as the first, and the ter
\ ror which had been excited in every
1 one, and indeed in all animal nature,
was now, If possible, doubled The
4 inhabitants fled in every direction to
the country, supposing, if it can be ad-
mitted that their minds were exercised
at all that there was less da ger at a
distance from than near the river. In
OF person, a female, the alarm was so
great that she tainted and could not be
recovered.
There were shocks each day, but
lighter than those already mentioned,
until the 23rd day of January 1872,
when one occurred as violent as the Sc
verest of the former ones, accompanied
by the same phenomena as the former.
From this until the 4th of February
the earth was in continual agitation,
VIslbly waving as gentle sea. On
/ t at day there was another gentle
shock, nearly as hard as the preceding
one. Next day. four such. and on the
9TH about O'Clock a. M, a concussion
| took place so much more violent than
those which had preceded it that it was
denominated the hard shock.
The awful darkness of the atmos
phere which, as formerly, was saturated
with sulphurous vapors. and the vio-
lence of the tempestuous laundering |
noise that accompanied it, together |
with all the other phenomena men
toned as attending the former ones, |
formed a scene the description of |
which will require the most fanciful
imagination. At first the Mississippi |
seemed to recede from its bank and its /
waters gathered up like a mountain.
leaving for a moment many boats.
which were on their way to New Or
leans, on bare land. in which time the
poor sailors made their escape from
them. 1t then rose Is or 20 feet per-
pendicularly and expanding, as i
were, at the same moment, the banks II
were overfowed with a retrograde cur
rent rapid as a torrent; the boats
which before had been left on the land,
were torn from their moorings and
suddenly driven up the little creek at
the mouth of which they laid, to the
distance in some instances of nearly a
quarter of mile.
The river falling Immediately as
rapidly as it had risen, receded within
its banks again with such violence that
it took with it whole groves of young
cottonwood trees which edged its bor-
ders. They were broken off with such
regularity in some instances that per-
sons who had not witnessed the fact
would be with difficulty persuaded that
it.had not been the work of man.
A great many fish were left on the
banks, unable to keep pace with the
water. The river was literally covered
with Wreckage of boats and it is said
we're a lady and six children, all of
whom~ were lost. In all the hard
shocks mentioned the earth was hor-
'ibly torn to pieces, the surface of
of acres were from time to q
line covered over to various depths =
)y the sand which issued from the fis- a
ures, which were made in great num- E
)ers. all over this country, some of n
which closed up Immediately after II
hey had vomited forth their sand and u
water, which it must be remarked s
vas generally the matter thrown up.
In some places, however, there was --
substance somewhat resembling coal
r impure stone coal thrown up with a
he sand. 1t is impossible to say what nj
he depth of the fissures or irregular U
reaks were. We have reason to be- n
eve that some of them were of great E
ept. The site Of this town was evil
emily settled down at least Is feet q
nd not more than half a mile below u
)Wn there does not appear to be any e
Iteration Of the bank of the river, but I
ack from the river a small distance 81
lie numerous large ponds or lakes, as "a
ley are called, which covered a great u
art of the country were nearly all q
.ied up.
The beds of some of these were ele-
ited above their former banks several
3et, producing an alteration of Is or
feet from their original state. And n
tely it has been discovered that a
Ike has been formed on the opposite n
de of the Mississippi in the indian q
untry upward of 100 miles in length 3
I'd from one to six miles in width and q
ON the depth of 10 to so feet. 1t has 4
with the river at both 3
IDS and it is figured that it will not be
any years before the principal part if 4
It the whole of the river will pass
at way.
We were constrained by the fear Of q
r houses falling to live II or ISL
1nths after the first shock in little q
,ht camps made of boards, but we
adually became callous and returned
our homes again. Most of those q
10 fled from the country in the time &
the hard shocks have returned
me. We have felt since their COM
sncement in 1911, and still continue q
feel slight shocks occasionally. 1t
seldom indeed that we are more
an a week without feeling one, and
netimes there are four in day.
There were two the past winter
lch harder than We have felt them
T two wears, before; but since then
~ appear to be lighter than they
We ever been and we begin to hone
At ere long they will entirely cease.
have now. sir, finished my pormised
Of the earthquake-imper-
t, it is true, but just as it occurred
my memory. Most Of the truly aw.
scenes occurred three or four years
,. They, Of course, are not related
.h that precision which would entitIe
10 character Of the full and accurate
ture. But such as it is, it is with
at pleasure in the full confidence