Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1925-03-02


entry on the morrow, the people of
Augusta and vicinity in common with
millions of others throughout the
northeastern United States and Can
ada experienced the particularly
heavy quaking of the earth Saturday
evening, which rocked houses and
places of business and played may
queer FRANKS with pictures, furni-
ture and bric-a-barc, besides giving
almost everyone a very real feeling
OF fear The earth tremor visited
this city about 9.1S-20 Saturday eve
ming, and almost everyone is willing
to vouch for its duration of from as
seconds to two minutes. Insome
buildings and in certain sections of
the city the effect seemed to be more
noticeable than in others. Some
people were entirely unaware of the
phenomenon until informed by
frightened neighbors or members of
the family who had been elsewhere
at the time of its occurrence.
Almost everyone was willing to adj
init that they experienced a very real
and definite sense of fear for the
moment which manifested itself in
different ways. When otherwise en-
tirely normal and ordinarily cool and
collected men and women will run
from their homes without outer gar
ments and without tarrying long
enough to gather up their valuables,
they most certainly have been inor-
dinately scared.
No considerable Damage
So far as could be ascertained Sat-
urday night or Sunday there was no
appreciable damage as the result Of
the visitation of the earthquake to
this city. Vases were toppled off
mantles and tables, pictures were
broken from swinging against the
wall, dishes were shattered and there
was the usual petty breakage accom-
panying an earth tremor. To most
Augusta residents the brief expert
ence was most extra ordinary and
was the most violent manifestation
of the kind which they had ever eX-
perienced.
Some claimed that they felt two
distinct shocks, while others eX-
planned the quake as one continuous
vibration. In the business section oil
the city the rocking of the buildings
seemed to be more violent on the
east side of the street, and many
storekeepers on that side of Water
street were for the moment most
appr ehensive lest their buildings
should come tumbling down about
their ears.
Quiet in Theatres
Where there were any consider
able assemblage of people In one
place there was no suggestion o,
1anic. In fact many of those IN the
the dance halls and theatres con-
cidered the trembling of the build
ing due to nothing more than the
De ssing of heavy electric freight cars
CT trucks.
Manager ]. NJ. Edgar Hart Of me
Augusta Opera House declared that
the quake passed practically un-
noticed to his audience.
MY telephone kept ringing SO
came down to my Office" said Mr..
Hart Yesterday. "A voice asked
.How's the Opera House, I replied
It's full. standing room only.
..The voice prote sted and asked
about the effect of the terrible earth-
onake shocks: Didn't it cause
panic?'
I'VE haven't felt any earthquake
here" informed them. NO" NO.
1.-The inquirer appeared dlsap-
rointed and muttered something
like. 1t mus be darn sollo mousse
and hung up
Humor in Situation
Citizens took a facetious attltude
in recountiug their own actions ate.
the event. They did not discount
their momentary fear, but did no.
hesitate in comparing notes, TO tel
of the ineXplicably funny Things
which they did in their panic. one
young man, a resident OF Chapel
street, said that he was reused from
a comfortable cat-rap by the sudden
crash of an obja falling on the
floor overhead. He reused ana
started to investigate, when he was
startled by two successive crashes
Starting up the stairs he was dumb
founded to find that the staircase
seemed to be rolling away from him.
and turning he made the lower floor
ir one bound, snatched up his over
coat and galoshe3 in his hand and
dashed into the middle of the street.
Householders everywhere w n
went to the street or to their doors to
learn the cause of the trembling OF
their houses found plenty of com
pany, as it seemed to have been the
general urge-to get out from under.
Pedestrians on Water street did
not notice the peculiar phenomenon
of the wrinhling of the earth. Whlie
storekeepers came out of their
shops to examine their blocks IN an
effort to locate the difficulty. From
the stories recounted yesterday it is
quite obvious that the shock was
more noticeable in the residential Sec
tions and that small frame dwellings
reacted to the quake to greater eX-
tent than did buildings of brick and
stone.
A certain proud grand daddy was
walking the floor with the baby when
he notice the sudden trembling OF
his house. He paused, braced his
feet, and swears that the movement
was so perceptible that the baby was
rocked to sleep in his arms.
There seemed to have been no Ill
effects experienced by the public
utilities in this section. The tele-
phone, light company and railroads
continued to function as usual.
In several instances the first trem-
ors of the earthquake We're thought
to indicate trouble with the heating
system. In the Journal office the
night JdHltOT, WIN Ildu IAcu tiiC III Z
but short time before, thought
that there must be too much pres
sure on the boiler and rushed to fix
it before it exploded. in several pri-
vate residences the same thought
occurred to the householders.
Domestic Pests Frightened
In one house where two dogs are
kept, the dogs were terrified and it
was necessary to calm them. A
laughable instance in the same house
was that of cuckoo clock, which
was hanging on the wall. was shak-
en- so violently that the cuckoo
came out, as if he too might be
scared. The heavy weights attached
to the clock swung in great arcs.
The motion described there was
sort of trembling of the floor &C