Year: 1873

tired for the night rushed into the streets,
those already in bed got up to see what
was the matter, and few-only limit
ed number-sat perfectly still and quietly
enjoyed that peculiarly exhilirating SEN
sation (them's good words) which nothing
but genuine earthquake can produce
Opinions differ greatly as to the duration
and direction of the shake"-some be-
ing too badly frightened to form any rea-
sonable opinion whatever-but all agree
that it was very heavy one. Our own
opinion-which, in our own mind, is as
good as anybody's-is that the shock con-
tinued fully sixty seconds, equal to one
minute, and that the vibrations were
Northeast and Southwest. Some people,
however, insist and are almost willing to
swear that the shock came from the
West, went East, thence North, thence
South, and then crossed over "joined
hands" and "balanced all )" variation
not given. The sensation produced upon
many of our citizens is described as that
of dizziness and tendency to sea-sick-
ness, while we even overheard Good
Good Templar remark that it made him
feel Just as he did when he "woke up the
next morning after jolly good spree"
No damage was done, save to the nerves
of large portion Of our adult population,
and they, we are most happy to announce,
have all survived.


In Weaverville, lamps swung to and
fro, or tipped from side to side, crockery-
ware, tin-pans and cooking-stoves ratified,
women screamed-at loast one did, but
as we don't know who she was we won't
give her name-men rushed frantically
down stairs and skinned their knuckles
against the wall, and about nine out of
ten exclaimed, "That's an earthquake,
sure ~ We rather guess it was. Next
morning about ten out Of every nine re-
marked to the others, "Did you feel the
shock last night ?" and most of them
were happy to say they did. In the pa
per- trough, in the JOURNAL office, usual
ly kept nearly full of water, the marks
left by the water, after the shock, indica-
ted that it had risen fully half-an-inch.-
Mortar was shaken from the walls of sew
eral brick buildings in town. In Lang's
tinshop, several pieces Of hydraulic-pipe,
which were piled one above the other,
came rafting to the floor, and certain
h0m6re who had just laid his weary form
to rest upon a couch in that building, sud
denly made up his mind that the Devil
had come to claim his due.


But the funniest thing-it makes US
laugh to think Of it, and we want every
body who reads this to think of it often
and laugh every time-happened in this
wise: One individual, conspicuous fol
the absence Of hair on top of his head, in
the place where the hair ought to grow
was discussing the earthquake question
with individual number two, and held
that he wasn't frightened at all. No.
said: "I'll own up that l was badly
frightened it scared me so bad that the
hair on my head actually raised" No.
resonded swell, l wouldn't care, A
dam, NO. 2's name" if it was shak-
ing yet, lift only raised hair on my headr
Ha, ha, ha Whoop ee Why don't
you laugh ?


This same earthquake-we presume il
was the same one-was felt about the
same time at various other places in
this county" (That is favorite express
sion of ours, and as we wouldn't steal
expressions from such poor devil as
ourself, we enclose it with quotations. -
We say "poor DEVIL" because the JOUR
NAL establishment lost about six feet and
one inch of "poor devil" " this week, and
we, the local, are now running the linking
apparatus.) At Indian Creek, it shook
phials from the shelves in the store, and
seems to have been particularly heavy in
that section, people generally being fright
ened.


In the neighborhood of junction City,
the earthquake was also severe, and as an
instance of how it operated there, we are
told that large log was moved exactly
eight inches. Now, Louis Raab told us
this, and long acquaintance with our
good-nat ured German friend leads us to
believe that Louis saw the log move and
then went and measured the distance, or
he wouldn't have told it for fact.


AT Douglas City the shock was not felt
by the inhabitants of the town, but within
mile or two it was felt distinctly. We
don't know how to account for it except
on the hypothesis (another good word)
that Douglas, which in days OF yore was
one of the livelest mining camps in the
county, has of late years fallen into a sort
of Rip Van Wrinkle slumber, from which
il will take heavier shock than that Of
Saturday night to awaken it.


We felt very proud over this earth
quake, until we learned that it had been
general from San Francisco to the north
ern boundary of Oregon, but now think
it was too common to brag on much
Still like the Certificate of Deposit which
was made out on India rubber, in order
that it might be drawn out whenever oc-
casion required, we have stretched little,
yet made that little long. We had orig
inally intended to do up the earthquake
in about two lines, but "alas, for the
rarity of Christian charity" the "boss 4"
came into the Office and mildly suggested
that san enterprising local would get
up column item on that earthquake.
Now, if we bave any ambition, i: is to
be considered "an enterprising local."