THE CHILIAN DISASTER.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 13249, 22 August 1906, Page 5

THE CHILIAN DISASTER.

A Town Partly Burnt. Two Hundred Thousand Homeless. RUIN UNIVERSAL, FURTHER SHOCKS FELT, United Press Association. I—By1 — By Eleotrif Telegraph.— Copyright. London, August 21. A great part of V'enadelmar was burnt. It is report ed that Africa was destroyed. 'A correspondent, who rode froim Santiago to Valparaiso, estimated two hundred thousand Chilians atfe homeless. Ruin is universal, eund it is impossible yet to estimate tihe fatalities. !Ain economic crisis is imminent. Some of the railways have reopeneel sections. Subscriptions for iho soiffer&rs Wave been opened in London. 'Shocks were felt at Mjartdmique on Monday and yesterday. BELLS RING IN THE STEEPLES. THE EARTHIQUA'KE PREDICTED. FIRES AT VALPARAISO SUPPRESSED. Looters Shot. A Heavy Death-roll. Valparaiso Totally Destroyed. THE CAUSE OF THE DISASTER). Received August 22, 8.32 wm, Loxudqn, August 21. The first shock at Santiago lasted four minutes fifty seconds. t , The heaving! motion > caused the bells to ring in the steeples. Experts state that the city vtfecs only saved from complete ruin by. the motion being circular. The Naval Observatory a t Valparaiso predicted the earthquake. The a/nnouncement was published in tko newspapers a day before. The fires at Valparaiso have been suppressed. Dynamise was largely used. iMany looters were shot summarily under martial j law. ■ J The Governor of Valparaiso estimates the minimum at three hundred killed and eight hundred wounded. Private individuals say the killed total nearer three thoxfeand. The Chief of Police estimates that j9O per cent, of the buildings have been destroyed. The Governor considers ViaJpara'iso totally destroyed, and that it will be necessary to demolish all that remains standing. , Sir Martin Conway, interviewed, attributed the earthquake to a great earth movement from east to west or west to east, parallel with the main streets, and 1 nearly parallel wiith the aea. He emphasised, the fact that Valparaiso is on the same line of weakness down the earth's crust as San Francisco.

(Sir Martin Conway 'has surveyed the Andes and other mountains, and may speak as an authority.)

ROBINSON CRUSOE'S ISLAND.

JUAN FERNANDEZ DESTROYED.

Received August 22, 9 a.m. New York, August 21.

Advices received from New York state that the earthquake destroyed Juan Fernandez— "Robinson Crusoe's" island.

TELEGRAPHS RESTORED.

From tho Chief Postmaster we learn that Valparaiso advises thai the line to Santiago has been restored; also that all the Chilian traffic is going forward.

The South' British, National, and Standard offices also are not affected by the earthquake. 'Advices received 1 from the Head Office of the New Zealand Insurance Company state that when, the Chilian Government imposed a deposit law in 1904, the 'Company decided not ito comply therewith, and preferred to go right out of ' the country. The Company therefore has no risks current inf Chili at the present time. Vialparaisd .(or. the ''Wale of Para-

dise") has been several times previously visited by serious eairthcpiakes. In November, 1822,. it, suffered by the catastrophe which ' permanently raised the coast of Chili. Its next serious visitation was in 1829, whilst in April, 1851, an upheaval struck the city and destroyed more; than four huarclred • houses. .Again in 1880 Illapel, a few miles north of Valparaiso, was destroyed, two hundred persons perishing.