The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, August 18, 1906, Page 2

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SATURDAY AUGUST 18, 1906. i, | apital of Chile, Scw*crcd From the World. \J C Iwav Tunnels hoked With Debris. | Ral ( Columns 4, 5 Continued from Page 1, and 6. twisted kn that death sides. ere were two distinct and terrific the second one following al- after the first and com- e work of destruction instantl been unusually At 8 o'clock the v denly to swing ba i and then cane a f such mighty force that buildings toppled to the earth ad see forw ide of brittle plaster, and all in Vista Burning. after nd shock had known the siness part f the town was ed. From t)e Bella Vista sec- e was heard, but before mid- were n burning there, was learned that that section doomed se city was alsc Awiul Force of Quake. stands upon a formation f granite, which seemed to accentu- the force of the shock. Before ned people were given time the ca- city magnitude of fires were nds of terrified ers knees praying nic swept the city | Hundreds Have Perished. { dslides have occurred | q city res of lives e been lost. Up to date it is im- sible to estimate the mber of ead in the but it is believed that of ere are hundred, many sti ns. The dis- s waste the best part of et rtion of the city and » e back many | Burnmg Cny Seen at Sea. I in of the German vessel ran, whic H arrived today at Coquim- Y n the coast of Chile, stated that, er er s at sea, he could see e flames raging in Valparaiso. fany inhabitants are terrified with ther shocks and the work of - g the bodies is proceeding very —_— ENGLISH INSURERS HIT. London Companies Carry Heavy South Amerigan Risks. ‘nless they can successfully hide be- hind earthquake clauses the English insurence companies will be d hit by the fire at Valparalso. They rry a large amount of risks therel of the great English rnmpnwsm Orient. London end Lancashire, | their Al the London and Liverpool and Gloge, Alli- ance, Commercial Union, Norwich Union, Palatine and others have agents | in Valparaiso and are large writers of insurance. The English companies, in their hunt for new flelds. bave covered South America better than those of other countries. Germany comes sec- ond. It i= probable that no American compapies had offices or risks in Chile. “We are anxiously awaiting full news of the destruction of Valparaiso,” sald an agent of one of the English insurance companjes yesterday after- noon. “All the English companies carry heavy risks in South Ameriea. Should | the city be completely obliterated by fire, our losses will be tremendous. I feel certain, however, from the reports I have seen, that we will be protected to a Jarge extent by our earthquake | e policies. It may not be news to but the earthquake clause was ated to protect us in our Scuth writings.” Wire to Valapariso Is Closed. NEW YORK, Aug. 17.—At 11:30 o'clock tonight the Central Cable Of- | fice of the Western Union Telegraph Company recelved a message stating: “The Valparaigo office is closed until 9§ | o'clock tomorrow morning.” No reason | is given for this and neither this nor any other message received by the com- | pany tonight throws any more definite light upon the situation. N + CZ/IVJ’/T’ ZAZA 4 London Houses Receive Confirming Messages. OXNDON, firms Aug 17.—Some trading with have recelved telegrams Lagunu there. One to James W, Alexander Brown says: London Valparaiso from “Sévere earthquake. Cemmerce par- alyzed. Town afire. Btaff safe.” Other dispatches give no details and merely record the safety of their ofi- cers and staff. A Hamburg firm is received a dispatch stating that nu- merous districts in Chile had been partly or totally Cestroyed; that Valpa- raiso had been practically demolished; that many ships had been lost and that over 100 persons had been killed and many hundreds injured. The dispatch, however, 1s not well authenticated, A dispatch to the Reuter Telegram | Company from Buenos Ayres this even- lng says “Telegraphic communication with | Chile is still interrupted. Santiago and | | Valparaiso are completely cut off. The Pacific cables are only working from | Iquique northward. It is certain that | a number of houses have been wrecked at Los Andes.” Los Andes, also known as Andes and Banta Rosa de Los Andes, is a town of Chile, province of Aconcagua, eighteen miles by rail from San Felipe de Acon- cagua, capital of the province of Acon- cagua. San Felipe is forty miles north of Bantiago, with which it is connected by rail. Telegrams of Anxious Firms Not Answered | alleged to have ;Wessel Duval —&—Co. and Grace| & Co. Get No Replies to Dispatches. EW YORK, Aug. 17.—~Wessel, Du- val & Co. of No. 26 Broad street| and W. R. Grace & Co., the two principal firms running lines of steam- ships to Valparalso, sent many cables today to their Chilean correspondents, | Jbut up te & late hour had recelved no |replies. This evening nothing was known as to what actually had hap- pened at Valparalso. Juan Tonkin of Santiago, Chile, said he could not foresee the effect of earth- quake and fire upon the city of Valpa- raiso until he had some definite In- formation. “The highest buiMings in Valparaiso are only about six stories,” sald Mr. | Tonkin, “so as not to be a mark for earthquakes. The modern buildings are of light construction sand would not probably suffer much from a quake. “The ancient buildings, which have very thick walls of masonry, would be most disturbed. The best and most in- teresting examples of ancient archi- tecture in Chile are in Santiago, but | Valparaiso has some fine structures. Prominent among these are the Nation- al Congress, the Palace of vustice and | the municipal theater.” The present population of Chile is | estimated by Tonkin at 4,000,000, which includes the capital, Sadtiago, with 450,000 and the principal port, Valpa- | raiso, with 200,000. There are about 150,000 foreigners in | Chile, including 25,000 ngiishmen, 30,- 000 Germans, 15,000 Frenchmen and ionly 500 Amerjcans. The greater pro- portion of these foreigners are located at Valparaiso. | There are no negroes in Chile, and most of the population is of Spanish | descent, although a greater number of leading families are of English an- cestry. Receive Direct News From Valparaiso. W. R. Grace & Co., whose headquar- |ters are temporarily in Oakland, re- \cehed <the following cablegrams yes- | terday: | “LIMA, Aug. 17.—Severe earthquake |at Valparaiso, Business stopped. Think | stafr all safe. W. R. GRACE & CQ.” And later: “LIMA, Aug. 17.—Valparalso office intact and staff all safe. “W. R. GRACE & CO." Arthur Page of the well-known firm of Page Bros, ship brokers at 414 Montgomery street, received the fol- lowing cable early yesterday morning | trom Valparaiso. It read: “Well; great damage.” This was sent by his two brothers, Dr. Olof Page and: Henry Page, who are now residing there. They are both 'well known jn this city, 1 | Jar Breaks Selsmograph' in City of Baltimore. ALTIMORE, Aug. 17—The earth- quake shocks recorded on the seismograph at Johns Hopkins University during last night and today were so violent at one time that the needle was thrown off the reg- istering cylinder. During last night and this morning fifty-one shocks were reforded, and once the needle jumped | three and a half inches sideways and off the film. Five tremors were regis- tered late this afternoon. ~ The big shock which disarranged the apparatus came at five minutes to 9 o'clock last night and lasted four min- utes. This s the greatest tremor ever registered at the university. Five shocks were felt seven minutes after 1 o'clock and twenty-two minutes to 2 o'clock this afternoon. Another jar came at twenty-five minutes after 1 o'clock this afternoon. The shocks filled the film and a new one had to be substituted. It was not on the cylinder three minutes before another tremor was shown. VICTORIA, B. C., Aug. 17.—The Val- paraigo earthquake was recorded by the selsmograph at Victoria. This after- noon E. Baynes Reed, the officer in charge of the Victoria meteorological station obtained the record of the shock, which, while not as severe as the San Francisco shock, was quite prolonged. There i8 the question of distance to be taken into conslderation in making comparison. From the local record the most recent earthquake occurred about 4:10 yesterday afternoon and lasted in- termittently from that time until § o'clock. The heaviest shock was felt at 4:45, when the swing of the boom of the selsmograph was about ten kilome- ters. The next bad shock was at 5:45 and thls, like the other one, Was pro- longed. HONOLULU, Aug. 17.—The tide gauges here showed a disturbance, ap- parently of distant origin. Beginning at 5:23 o'clock this morning, three waves per hour were indicated, show- ing an oscillation from the normal tides of between three and four inches. WASHINGTON, Aug. 17. — The Weather Bureau today issued the fol- lowing earthquake bulletin: “A very heavy, distant earthquake was recorded on the selsmograph at the Weather Bureau in Washington yester- day afternoon beginning at 7 minutes and 22 seconds past 7 o'clock, seventy- fifth meridian time. Complete and per- fect records were obtained of hoth the north and south and the east and west movements of the earth. The earth tremors at Washington were comparatively slow and deliberate In motion, each complete movement covering from elghteen to forty sec- onds of time. The earthquake lasted ‘continuously for several hours and finally ceased at about midnight. The most violent shock occurred at seven hours, forty-two minutes, twenty-six seconds p. m. From press reports there is evidently a record of the great Chilean earthquake of August 16, and is the heaviest recorded in Washington since the San Francisco earthquake.” ALBANY, N. Y., Aug. 17.—The earth- quake in Chlle yesterday was recorded on the selsmograph located in the State Museum buii®ag, according to State Geologist John M. Clarke. Professor Clarke says that the disturbances were not as noticeable as at the time of the San Francisco earthquake. The in; tru- ments recorded the shocks as foll North-south vibrations -wwi at l 43 p. m. Became violent at 7:47. Lasted till §:58 p. m. East-west vibrations started at 7:34 p. m. Became violent n 7:47. Last till 8:55 p. m. East-west return !hoclfi n 11 p. m. and lasted till 9:27. began at e el To Cure a Cold In One Day Take Laxative Bromo ulnm‘\ ‘Tablets: Druggists refund money i It fails cure: &u\\ Grove's -i;‘ mh‘h& “3 ed tunqlllp!mmnln antiago Feared to Have Met Doom of Seaport Prooress and Splendor of By H. Pedro Cadot E. Secretary Consulate of Chile. HE beautiful eity and the mest important Chilean port is said 1@ { TFated Valparaiso. { have been greatly damaged by a severe temblor and fire Thursday, the destruetion being, according to the accounts, commensurate with that undergone by this city on the not to be forgotten date of April 18, 1906. $ : Valparaiso means “Valley of Paradise.” This name by itself gives better than any /description an accurate ‘conception of the beautiful South American metropolis. It is built on the slope of a mountain ridge, which cles around the beach. An extensive embankment, or “Malecon,” serves as a protection from heavy seas. The principal streets extend through- out the length of the city, increasinig in number as the hills (cerros) re- cede for a little distance. Railways connect Valparaiso with its surburbs, Vina del Mar, etc., and thence with other cities of the republic. Incline railways cross the city and unite the lower part with the summits of the “cerros,” where a large proportion oi the population has its residence la | Valparaiso’s Imporiance as a Commercial City. Valparaiso has an important position among great commercial cities as the chief seaport of the west coast of South America and an immense and constantly growing emporium of trade on the Pacific. The throbbing life of trade of the modern seaport, which is a constaht scene of consuming activity, is of a more worldly and practical kind than anything suggested by its poetic name. Yet it is really a © ley of Paradise” in every way The favorable attitude toward foreign trade has given a great impetus to the development of Valparaiso as a commercial port, and, notwithstand- ing the great earthquake of 1822 interrupting its progress for a time, the city grew and prospered wonderfully. Unfortunately, it was again retarded in its progress by the raging fire of 1843, which swept over the business section of the city, destroying over a million dollars’ worth of property. Hardly had this loss been repaired and the burned district rebuilt when in 1858 another fire, more destructive still, burned the heart of the city, resulting in a loss of more than six millions. |Bombarded by Fleet of Spanish Warships. A few years iater, in 1866, the terrific bombardment by the Spanish destroyed over ten million dollars of property. Again, in 1888, a calamity befell the city, a dam on one of the “cerros” having broken and caused the | loss of many lives and millions of dollars. “ Notwithstanding all drawbacks, Valparaiso grew to be a city of about ‘zoo,coo inhabitants, and presented the appearance of a modern seaport, with numerous wharves, equipped with hydraulic works of great import- | ance, where ships of the heaviest tonnage might be moored. The extensive {and up-to-date customs warehouses are handsome and commodious build- ings, supplied with complete hydraulic machinery for handling merchandise. { There are several floating docks for repairing vessels up to 4000 tons’ ca- | pacity. Strong forts mounted with heavy cannon of modern manufacturs command the harbor completely. | Handsome Edifices Adorn Chilean Seaport. The beautiful city of Valparaiso has erected handsome edifices of miod- ern and costly architecture. The public buildings are magnificent and im- possing and are surrounded by plazas, beautified by trees and shrubs. Mag- nificent monunrents, erected by a grateful nation in honor of its heroes, may be seen everywhere. Especially that of the noble Captain Arturo Prat, the hero of the Peruvian war, whose memory is imperishable, is a splendid work of art, Near the Plaza Lotomayor stansd the imposing palace of the Tribunals of Justice. Among many other conspicuous edifices there is the btandsome marine- Government house, overiooking the promenade on the Malecon, a beautiful esplanade on the embankment; the port railway sta- tion, the Intendenciy the Postoffice, the castle of Senor Echaurren, the Bank of Caropaca, the Municipal Theater and the Victoria Theater, the palatial residence of Senora Juanes Ross de Edwards, the Museum of Natural history and many others. Privale and Scholastic Siructures. There are also in this beautiful metropolis several large, elegant, first- ! class hatels, among which may be mentioned the fashionable Grand, one of | thhe best in Chile, occupying nearly an entire block. There are handsome buildings for schools, with the latest improvements. The old Cathedral of La Merced and many parochial churches of imposing structure, especially that of the Twelve Apostles, also aid to give Valparaiso an aspect of splen- dor and magnitude. There are several parks scattered through the city, and long, wide avenues and beautiful plazas, surrounded by handsome edifices, give an impos}ng and agreeable appearance to this port. The incrgase of population has gradually led to the occupation of the cerres as a fi;ce of residence, and many of the handsomest homes in thc city now adorn these hills. Valparaiso has not only increased in popula- '!ion and extended its commercial influence abroad, but has made notable advancement in the realm of science and the fine arts, music and literature. Many institutions have heen founded by scientific men that reflect great credit on the city’s progress. Most Advanced of South American Cities. Valparaiso has led all other cities in South America in the introduc- tion of the latest inventions and most modern systems of municipal im- provement. For business interests Valparaiso has a commercial exchange, or Stock 'Exchange; nine national banks and four foreign ones. The city is the chief commercial center of Chile, having an import and export trade of mare than $150,000,000 annually. It has communication with every city of the republic by a network of state and private telegraph lines. The telephone subscription list in Valparaiso is probably larger than that of any other city of the same population in the world. The various navigation companies, with sfeamers running on the west coast of South America, have keadquarters in this city. Stricken in Hour of Her Greatest Promise. In everything that tends to growth and prosperity Valparaiso has ad- vanced with sure and rapid strides. The outlook was more promising than it had ever béen for the development of the “Valley of Paradise™ as one of the world’s most important seaports. And now, checked by Thursday's temblor and fire, we can only compare her to her sister in misfortune, San Francisco, doomed to ruin by a freak of nature. It is to be hoped that the damage has not annihilated the city, but in any event the energetic Chilean people will from its embers rebuild a hand- somer and greater city, aided by the courage characteristic of their nature. BATTLERS PLENTY 50 MEN ENTOMBED AT STAFOOT. | IN A MINE SPECIAL nunm TO TOR CALL, BRISTOL, Va., Aug. 17.—Fifty men DENVER, Aug. 17—Harry Davis, 8 are entombded allve in the Clineh Denver rattleanake dealer, is a sadder | Mountain tunnel at Clinchport, Va., as and wiser and poorer man today. a result of a cave-in which occurred oftered to pay S. F. Acree, man today. It is not known whether the % men are dead or alive, but the work the Currier nnc:r. twenwffl':(“": of rescue is being rushed as fast as southeast of Greeley, $1 8 foot for all|poagible. Alr is being pumped into the the live rattlesnakes he would deliver | tunnel by several pumps for a distance to Bl of 700 feet, and a large force of men Acree knew where hundreds of nese Is working in an effort to rescus the vonnmom reptiles made thelr home on | Unfortunates bel they perish, it l‘iv ranch, and he started to mqu. dead. i) they are not ab h the assistance of a !rh: LT i P B xfi:":’*’mm gEEE=S rnj had a combin fl?n of Tt‘o’o t, making the job worth $1500, Acree could Tave captured twice as many more, but decided to wait and see what the Denver man sald. .ihe latter admitted that if Acree held him to his bargaln it would bankrupt -him, | {he Ln they compromised at §1 per snake. chwh!-. u-mh