THE EARTHQUAKE AT LAIBACH

Timaru Herald, Volume LVIII, Issue 1777, 11 June 1895, Page 4

THE EARTHQUAKE AT LAIBACH

The London Central Nkbs received the following graphic account of the terrible earthquake which occurred m the neighbourhood of Laibach during the night of April 14^15, from a distinguished resident in 'that city. He says:— I About a quarter past eleven on Sunday night, April 14th. Count Auersperg and I were sitting by ourselves chatting m a room on the ground floor of the Casino, when the first "shock of earthquake occurred. All the glasses and crockery m the room fell with a fearful crash, and although, the shock only lasted a few seconds, it seemed to me to be quite an eternity. The countrand I, immedr iately the first shock took place, bolted to the door, and naturally my first thoughts were to hurry home to see how my wife and children fared. As soon as I got outside the Casino doors I found the streets thronged with people, and scarcely had I run sixty or eighty yards when the second terrible shock occurred, I was iri the Stern-Allee at the moment, and, chimney-pots and other missiles were ■ crashing down m all direction's, while the atmosphere was clouded with dust, and the night air was everywhere rent with cries of despair and shouts for assistance. I met some of my .acquaintances, who endeavoured to dissuade me from visiting my home, on account of the 1 dangers from falling buildings. I continued, however, on my journey, and with a view to taking a short cut turned down the Judengasse, but the narrow lane was rendered almost, if not entirely, impassable by fallen deoris, and I had to' find some other way to my home. I went along by the river Laibach. stepping over bricks .and mortar that had fallen down to the Radetzky Bridge, which was crowded with people,' some only halfjclad, and many with scarcely any clothing at all, so hastily had' they left their homes. Mothers with babies m their arms were rushing about and screaming, and along by the river rows of white figures were kneeling, with only one here and there fully dressed, praying to the Almighty. On reaching my home I had to step over heaps of debris— fallen chimneypots, &c.^-to get inside, and there I found the children on the point of leaving. They were warmly though scantily clad, and I found that both they and my wife had behaved very bravely, though the servants had lost their heads and bolted. We went through the rooms to see what damage had been done, and ruin was shown every where. The walls were cracked m many places, the rents extending from floor to ceiling, and tlie carpets were covered with broken nicknacks which had been thrown down. In fact, the whole place was a wreck. We were just finishing our inspection when the third shock took place (about halfpast eleven or a quarter before midnight), and we all made a hasty retreat from the house. The house is a large one, having three storeys, and the swaying was such that, while on the second floor, I really thought the building would reel over on to its side. Thanks to Providence, however, we reached the street m safety. Several other shocks occurred afterwards, each being accompanied by subterranean rumblings which struck dread and horror into the already terror-stricken people. My family remained m the open air until two a.m., and I then began to fear that they would take serious colds. Remembering that the cellar of j our house was very strongly arched, it i struck me that it" would afford a safe j haven of refuge for my wife and my little I ones, and I hurried bapk into the house and threw from the windows blankets, coverlets, pillows, bolsters, and other things which would conduce to comfort, Of our five servants not one could be found, and so my wife and I installed the children m the cellar as best we could. Just as we had finished a servant of Baron Hem, the Governor of Oarniola. came up to inquire how we fared, and from him I learnt that all our friends, Baron Hem's family, Count Auersperg, Count Altens and others, had suffered terribly, and were then bivouacking m their carriages on the Deutsehe Platz (a large open space). As an instance of the haste with which all classes of people left their homes, it may be mentioned that Baroness Hem, whosehusband was not m town, escaped m her nightdress only, and was when the servant came to us, sitting m her carnage with the overcoat of her coachman wrapped around her. As soon ' as daylight began to appear I went to visit our friends on the Deutsche Platz, ] and having ordered our carriage, we also camped on the Platz till the afternoon. I shall never as long as I live forget the expressions upon the faces of the people around us. Everyone was distressecf to the utmost, eyes swollen with crying, and when any spoke theiryoices quivered with excitement and emotion. Everyone was absolutely helpless. Even we who possessed castles to which we could, retire did not know what might be the outlook there. What rendered the scene so terrible and heartrending was the number of invalids and small children who had to bivouac iri the open air without any adequate protection from the wind and weather.