FURTHER DETAILS.

Auckland Star, Volume XVII, Issue 241, 13 October 1886, Page 6

FURTHER DETAILS.

THE DEVASTATION IN GREECE.

During the past week terrible earthquakes have occurred in Greece and the United States. They are among the most extensive on recard. The shock in Greece took place just before midnight on Friday; Among the chief sufferers were the lonian Islands, on the west coast of the Peloponnesus. On the mainland, Fhiliatnt Pyrgos, Gargaline, Coronie, and other towns were laid in ruins, attended bj> considerable loss of Jlife. For 15 seconds the whole island of Zante shook to its base, but although no single dwelling escaped damage, no lives were sacrificed., Fro__ the scanty details at present to band of tha extent of the damage on the other Wands* it is estimated that fully 300 persons hare perished, while the damage to property amounted to several million drahmas. the loss in the province of Elia alone being two millions, and at Fhiliatra ten millions. The shocks extended far beyond, the boundaries of Greece. At Naples, Malta, and Alexandria they wore distinct, but na serious mischief was done, At peveral towns on the south-west coast of Italy the terrified inhabitants fled into the fields to avoid the danger of the falling houses. Four days later several sharp shocks were felt at Smyrna, but no damage was done. The earthquake did not come withont warning. Extraordinary atmospherical disturbances, excessive heat, dead calms, and unusually high tides had been observed for several days previously. The Scenes In America.

At Washington, Bichmond, Atlanta. Augusta, Louisville, Indianopolis,. Pittsburg, Cleveland, Chicago, Memphis, and most of the New England States, the shock • was a minute in duration, and wag noiseless. In Charleston, when Ihe shock waa felt, the inhabitants, in a state of frenzy, rushed into thestreets, many beingonly partially clothed. Cries rent the air from those hurt by t&b falling structure., from some who realised that in a moment death had invaded their homes j and again from others who screanied through fright. The negro population were especially very hysterical, and ynreyunable to afford any assistance to the Thoro self pos=e_sed of tho white people. Amid the contusion that followed immediately upon the earthquake, five fireß broke opt, and raged until 20 buildings were destroyed. 1 Although the houses were blazing stein., taneously in several quarters of the city, none but the firemen paid the slightest regard to them. Everybody seemed absorbed in noting the vibrations jp_ the earth, which were repeated at intervals, and in listening to the fearful subterranean sounds like the groaning of some imprisoned monster. These rivet-ted tho attention of the population,, to the utter disregard of everything else. Up to noon on Wednesday there had been about"* dozen shocks, but none of the later ones 1 were equal to tha first.

Excitement in Charles tan.

The editor of a Charleston paper gives-Hut. ' following account of the soene in the street, when the first sboc'i was felt:—" On every side there arose thriekg and cries of pain, fears, prayers, tho waitings of terrified women and children commingled with the ' hoarse shouts of excited men out in .the streets. The air was filled to the height of the houses with a whitish cloud of dry stifling dust from the lime and mortar, and the eha.te.ed masonry which was falling upon the pavement had been reduoed to powder. Through this cloud, which was dense as a fog, the gaslights flickered dimly, shedding but little light, so that you stumbled at every- step over piles of brickwork, or became entangled in lines of telegraph wires, whioh . depended in every direction from the broken 1 supports. On every side were seen hurry-, ing the forms of men and women, harsheaded, partly dressed, some almost nude, and crazed with fear and exc.teraenfc".. <> Telegraphing on Thursday, the eorreepondent said : " The earthquake has caused a total cessation of business, the only places open being the drug stores, whioh supplied help for the injured, and some grocery Sk°^ eßi' Tlle PeaPle were afraid to re-enter i their houses, and hence they were becoming ( famished. Kot a hundred boußes were ih^i habited, and there were not half a do_en tents in the city. Shelters were improvised with sheet-j and awnings. Fortunately the weather was good, and consequently the i streets and parks contained the entire population, among whom the negroes were conspicuous, huddled together in abject aod help ess terror, prayijg and singing' hymns. Here and there dead bodtee were seen. The exact number of casualties is unknown. It is believed that about 30 are killed and 100 injured. The damage to property ia five million dollars. J., other parts of tbe country I ■\o_rie surprising phenomena manifestW th.meelves. Geyser, sprang up suddenly in Atlanta, Georgia. In Lawrence County some volcanic eruptions took place. ■At Bellcplain, lowa, an artesian well wag i» prr_gre__ of construction, and from it there gusl'eJ, without pr-liminary warning, torrents utterly beyond control. Sacksofsand . thrown it. were tossed up like corks by ■ solid stream of mineral water, the diameter of anordinary barrel, which spouted into the air lumps of coal, pyrites, and stone*. Reports from other parts of the Southern Stites .how that .hocks were felt, but no casualties have occurred there, and the amount of dumage done is small." - :''f