DISASTERS TO AMERICAN CITIES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13651, 21 July 1906, Page 7

DISASTERS TO AMERICAN CITIES.

RECALLED PA' SAN FRANCISCO'S FALL. If comparisons of ordinary things are odious, then comparisons of horrible things are well nigh criminal. The oldest inhabitant, however, always remembers something woisc than the present catastrophe and proceeds to add to our troubles by digging other troubles out of the »rave.s of the p:ist, That is where tho San Francisco holocaust bad the best of the oldest inhabitant. He could not invent anything worse and could not remember anything half so bad. This horror had him bound, gagged, and helpless. Thus he felt that it had doubly injured him. He not only suffered from it all that others suffered, but, in addition, it robhcdl him of his cherished privilege of saying, "Yes, this is purty bad, but bad; in 1868".—or, 'This ain't a circumsta.nce. to" —etc. True, he might go back to Pompeii and Herculaneum, but they were a trille too ancient even for tbe memory of the oldest inhabitant. So he could only sit in a sort of dazed but resentful silence.

From the standpoint of magnitude the San Francisco disaster is the worst in American history. The Chicago fire of 1871, which so long held the gruesome primacy, is surpassed. All other fires arc in the "also burned" class. • As for other American earthquakes, they were only littlo tremors compared to this. In other words, they were "no great shakes." As for loss of life, it is not accurately known even yet how many died, as a result of the double calamity thai- overtook tbe Golden Hate City. Perhaps it never will be exactly determined. We have had one recent horror which overtopped that of &n Francisco in the matter of mortality, though not even remotely approaching it in the loss of property. That was the Galveston flood of September, 1900. It is believed that nearly 6000 people perished in the tidal wave that overwhelmed the Texas city, while the property loss was at least 17,000,000d01. In the San Francisco horror General Grecly estimates that about 300 persons lust their lives, while tho destruction and damage to property will probably reach 250,000,000d01. Tho great Chicago (ire of 1871 resulted in less than 200,000,000d0l property loss and fewer than 300 deaths. Tho two other great American fires are Boston, 1872, and Baltimore, 1904. The loss d? property at Boston was in tho neighbourhood of 80,000,000d01, and that at Baltimore perhaps io,ooo,ooCdol less. Loss of life at both of these conflagrations was comparatively trifling. Almost every city in the land has had more or less disastrous fires, but none to approach those mentioned. In tho early history of tho country the most severe blaze was that at New York in 1835. Here the property destroyed amounted to at least 15,000,000d01. .Since that day the metropolis has escaped with, comparatively small disasters.

San Francisco's only considerable conflagration prior to the present one was in 1851, when property wan consumed) to the amount of about 10,000,000d01. Of earthquakes she has had many, one of the worst having been in 1868. This one shook some fun out of Mark Twain. The quivers ill the . western metropolis have been so frequent, in fact, that the inhabitants ceased to be disturbed very much by their advent. Kone of them did any very great damage.

Prior to the San Francisco disaster the greatest earthquake in American history was that at Charleston, S.C., twenty years ago. It occurred on August 31, shook down hundreds of buildings, rendered three-fourths of the city uninhabitable, killed scores of people, and destroyed property to the extent of at least 8,000,00Cd01. To add to the horrors of the homeless people, tremors continued for months afterwards. Among the buildings injured wore two famous churches, the French Protestant, said to be the only Huguenot church in America, and St. Philip's, the. only lighthouse church in the world. St. Philip's is one of the oldest churches in America, and is known as the "Westminster Abbey of South Carolina," for the reason that some of the most famous sons of the Palmetto State, among them John C. Calhoun, lie buried there. It was pretty well demolished by the earthquake, but has been completely restored. It did not gain the distinction of being the lighthouse church till 1894, when a powerful lantern was placed in its tall steeple as a guide to mariners making the harbour. The French Protestant church iilso suffered severely, but has been rebuilt. It was founded by the Huguenots who were driven from France as the result of the revocation of the Edict of Nantes.

In the Charleston earthquake the shock was felt from Florida to Maine and as far west as lowa.

The damage from cyclones has been widespread, especially in the Mississippi Valley, but no single disaster has even remotely approached the greatest ones of fire, earthquake, and flood. One of the worst cyclones in our history was that which visited St. Louis in tho early summer of 1896. One may even yet detect all over the Missouri city jagged patches of newer brick and stone in place of that which was blown down by tho cyclone. The same phenomenon is also present in many other cities and towns that, have been visited by twisters. The wind still bloweth where it listcth, and sometimes it picketh up a town and sprinkleth it over the prairie. When a breeze gets going in a circle it is time for people to make a straight line for a hole in the ground. The Galveston flood, by the way, was caused by a terrific wind sweeping in from the Gulf of Mexico.

There have been many minor inundations, scarcely any part of the country escaping. The Ohio Valley has been visited many times, as have also tho Mississippi and Missouri Valleys. Topeka, Kan., suffered quite severely from a flood a few years since. Many cities on the Atlantic watershed have also been inundated, a. notable instance among them being Paterson, N.J, —

Severe as some of these floods were, however, none of them came within speaking distance of the Galveston horror. The city is located.or. a low-lying island. On September 8, 1900, culminated a tempest tlia„ had been raging for nearly 24 hours. An hour before they were blown away the instruments of the weather department recorded tho wind moving at a velocity of 84 miles an hour. How much greater speed was finally attained will never bo known. The result was that the citv was entirely overwhelmed by the waters of the gulf. When they receded, practicallv the whole town was wrecked, one-fourth of the population drowned, sections of the city had been swept clean of houses, telegraph and telephone communications were destroyed, the waterworks demolished. and the wells and cisterns filled with salt water. The most vigorous efforts were required to avert a water famine.

To prevent future disasters of the kind a sea wall has been, built around the gulf side of the city of Galveston. It is made of concrete, is nearly three and a-lialf miles in length, is 16ft thick at the bottom, and sft at the top, is 7ft higher than the top water mark prior to the disastrous flood, and over Ift higher than that unprecedented record. To back this great wall, the grade of the city has been considerabljr raised.

Tho last of the great fires prior to that of the Golden Uate City was at Baltimore only a little over two years ago. There were 75 blocks burned over and nearly 2500 buildings destroyed. At a conservative estimate the loss amounted to 70,000,000d01. So long the Dames raged that fire departments were called from other cities, distant New York even sending a large body of men and a corresponding amount of apparatus. The fire started the morning of Sunday, February 7, and raged for 38 hours. An eye-witness has described the beginning of it as follows: " 'Suddenly from the heart of the business district came three explosions like the boom of distant cannon. A tripletongiied flame leaped high into the air, and then a column of dense black smoke shot straight into the sky, its bulbous top j spreading and unrolling'like one gigantic tree of gloomy omen. For a moment, it hung, much as the black doom is d'escribed to have hovered over Mount Vesu-1 vins." Some conception of the extent of the ! ensuing conflagration may be gained from the fact that the fire insurance companies actually paid in losses over 30,000,000(101,

Tlio Boston fire of November 9 and 10, 1872, burned over 65 acres and destroyed nearly 300 buildings, almost all of which were constructed of brick and stone. Though the fire raged for two days, only 14 people were killed. The Hub City bravely met her own losses, although only a year previously she had rallied so gallantly to stricken Chicago's relief. There are few more inspiring examples of brotherhood between cities than that furnished by Boston when the Lake City was laid in ashes.

Second only to the San Francisco conflagration stands the Chicago fire of October 8 and 9, 1871. It. started in a small barn on the west side, its inception having been due to tho kicking over of a lamp by the Widow O'Leary's cow.' For over 26 hours it raged, when a fortunate rainstorm helped the firemen get it under control. In that time it had spread over more than 2000 acres, nearly three and a-half square miles; had destroyed' tho main business and residence sections of the city, had consumed property to tlio amount approximately of 187,000,000d01, and had killed at least 275 people. The insurance companies paid 46,00D,00M0], <i« a result of which many of them went into liquidation. That time is still remembered by ihfi older people as one of the blackest in the country's history. Yet Chicago was not daunted bv tlio blow. The "burned outers," as they'called themselves, went immediately to work. Temporary business booths were erected along the ruin-lined streets, and the Queen City's motto, "I will!'' was immediately in evidence. Nearly 100,000 people were made homeless by that, devastation, but there was little repining. Never, except m war times, had the fortitude and pluck of tho American character been shown to better advantage. It was during the Chicago fire that the story was told of the man who burned his fingers by fishing out a hot brie!;. When asked what lie was doing, he replied: "Just trying to see when these things will be cool enough to be laid down again."

Not only did Boston respond to the cry of the Lake City, but from all over this country and Europe flowed in a constant stream of donations. Messages were received from New York merchants reading something like this: "Suppose you are burned out; order from us what goods yon wish; pay for thorn when you can."

The Chieaco spirit was nowhere shown to better advantage than by the citizen who stood among her smoking ruins awl predicted that by 1900 she would contain 1,000,000 inhabitants, which was three times what 6he had then. The prophecy was more than made goad. All ofythese cities were quickly repaired!, and in two years' time were in better condition than before. Xhe fires gave Boston and Baltimore a. chance to straighten out and widen their streets. Chicago's disaster only added to her determination, and gave her a spirit that has made her the second city-in the land. Charleston has almost forgotten that she had an earthquake, Galveston has fortified herself against her enemy, the sea, while substantial St. Louis hardly paused'to notice the assault of the cyclone. The rapidity with which these communities overcame disaster has the overworked "Phcenix rising from her ashes" fleeing around tho block and dodging into a back alley. To realise tho magnitude of the Ran Francisco loss "it need' only he stated that the territory burned over in the Pacific city amounts to seven and one-half square miles, or more than twice that burned over in Chicago. At least three times as many people were rendered homeless in San Francisco as in the Lake City. There was probably more than three times the loss of life in the Golden Gate metropolis, nearly twice tho loss of property, and a more absolute suspension of business. .Moreover,. tho buildings left standing in San Francisco suffered from earthquake, to say nothing of the suburbs and smaller towns that were shattered and burned roundabout. At. the time of. the fire of 18Y1 Chicago had .only about 534,000 population, while the > estimated population of the Pacific metropolis at the time of her destruction was in the neighbourhood of 450,000; Taken as a whole, the destruction that has overtaken the Golden Gate City is at least twice that which befell the Queen City of the West. This makes it far and away the greatest single disaster in American history, outside of war, and one of the greatest in the history of the world.

But while tl:e destruction has surpassed that of all previous catastrophes, the response of the people has more than kept pace. Already about 20,000,000d0l has been raised in cash alone, to say nothing of the ■immense donations of clothing, food], tents, free transportation, and other supplies. This is nearly twice as much as was raised for Chicago even in three months after her disaster. New York alone contributed 3,000,000d0l to the relief of San Francisco, and other cities and smaller communities have kept pace. In addition, tho insurance losses paid to the Pacific metropolis will be the greatest ever given in a single fire. Companies will not suspend and default, as they did in the case of Chicago.—J. A. Edgf.rton'.