Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1921-01-30
QUAKE EPIDEMIC
NO RE ASON> FOR
GENERAL ALARM
Scientists Says Earth Ire
mOrS Are Only Growing
Pains of the Newer Geol-
/ ogiC Formations.

Cambridge, Mass, Jan. 29.-The
epidemic of earthquakes that
shook the world in several widely
separated sections in recent weeks
contains no cause for general
alarm; they are only the growing
pains of the new geologic fOrma-
lions and old Mother Earth her-
self at heart is still sound and sol"
id. This, in effect, is the reassur-
ing statement of Prof. J. b. Wood
worth, who is in charge of the
Harvard seismographic station, as
prepared for the Associated Press.
Earthquakes have a way of Oc-
curing in series, he said, and the
world merely has been suffering
from another of these periodic
strings of commissions in the shocks
reported from Albania, China and
Peru. AS a matter of fact there
are a score of earthquakes strong
enough to be felt or registered
somewhere in the world every
twenty-four hours, but only a
small proportion of them are Sc
rious. Some are so small that they
would not be realized but for the
sensitiveness of instruments. To in
dictate the fine perceptions of these
Instruments, Professor Woodwork
said that in times Of severe storms
at sea the crash of the surf on the
rocky coast of Newfoundland is
regist cred at the seismographic la
boratory here.
1.-THE quakes that shook China
and South America last month
were not the same, but separate
shocks" said Professor Wood
worth. "GeologiSts all know that
earthquakes are likely thus to
come in groups. For example, in
the year 1855 theN city OF Lisbon
inc Portugal was destroyed by an
earthquake on November /. while
on the 18th of the same month
Boston was severely shaken. The
difficulty is that there is no way
of telling exactly when or where
they will occur II one serious
quake occurs, We may predict that
others are likely to follow 1t, but
that information is of little practl-
cal value since we cannot tell how
long the epidemic will last, what
the interval between the quakes
will be, or in what part of the
earth they will occur.
1.-THE eastern part of the United
States is not often visited by severe
earthquakes. The only severe ones
felt hereabouts since New Eng
land was settled were in $685. in
1927, and in 1855, with a much les
ser one in 1872.
'aThe shock of 1927 was so Wig
orous that sermons were preached
on "A Holy Fear Of God and His
Judgments, and a day of fasting
and prayer was observed. The
shock of 1856 brought down 1900
chimneys and the gable ends Of
brick houses in Boston. But the
really large earthquakes are in the
portions of the earth such as ia
pan, the East Indies, Alaska, and
the Pacific ocean floor, where the
mountains are new geologically,
and where the rocks are moving.
Volcanic regions are often identical
with earthquake regions, but great
earthquakes show no immediate
connection with volcanoes.
about twenty earthquakes
strong enough to be felt or regis
tered occur every day in the year
somewhere in the world, but only
very small proportion of these
are serious. The Hard seismograph
registers some eighty earthquakes
year, chiefly distant ones from
1000 to 5000 miles away