Enorniijy of the Catastrophe Grows
as Reports Come from the
Devastated Provinces.
SOJLRQR PILES UPON HORROE.
Hundreds of Injured Imprisoned in
Debris aaid Pestilence
Confronts tlie People.
One hundred and fifty thousand per
sons of a population of 1,750.000 in the
Italian departments of Calabria and
Sicily deastaled by the earthquake-
one in every twelve inhabitants are
dead in ( he most disastrous catastrophe
of modern times , in which Reggie , a
city of 50,000. vanished from the face
of the earth , leaving but live mad sur
vivors. Another city was almost en
tirely washed into the sea and the
whole face of a nation was changed in
the space of thirty-two seconds. The
measure of havoc cannot accurately be
estimated. No accurate figures on the
death list are obtainable , but apparent
' ) ' ly reliable estimates place the fatalities
I 4 as high as 150,000. The calamity is
the greatest in the history of the
V world.
il' From several towns near the
center of the disturbance no word
came. and there seemed reason
MAP OF DEVASTATED HEGION.
11
to fear that there are no survivors to
describe their fate. The destruction of
property could not be as great as at
San Francisco , for Messina and Reg-
Bio , tiie two principal cities destroyed ,
were not rich or magnificent from the
metropolitan point of view.
l-'ace o Country In Altered.
As a great cataclysm of nature , how
ever , this disaster is on a far vaster
Bcale than the California phenomenon.
The whole face of the country and the
coast line have been altered. Even
Scylla and Charybdis have changed the
positions they have occupied since
Aenas" legendary voyage. The three
provinces where the greatest damage
was done were Messina and Catania.
SEARCHING FOR BODIES IN EARTHQUAKE RUINS AFTSR TIIE 1905 SHOCK.
'irxf ifrflttf + fsti&VAXSIf' { { * * * f ' ' TL\ \
'
* .r - tvmj
E,7SSiisKHE2J KE3SJ
tea
later a great wave completed the
havoc in the ill fated coast towns. The
violence of the shock seems to have
been unprecedented except by volcanic
eruptions within a limited area. The
buildings of Messina were not merely
shaken down their foundations liter
ally were yanked from beneath thorn
to one side or to the other , until they
toppled from the perpendicular and
fell in ruins alongside their original
t.ites. That was the experience of Mes
sina. That of Reggio. on the opposite
side of the strait , must have been more
violent , for scarcely one stone remains
on another in that once nourishing
city.
city.The
The ominous absence of details con
cerning Reggie proves to be due to the
fact that not only the city itself but
its whole population with the possible
exception of a mere handful has dis
appeared.
Chaotic IlofUs Ileplnoe City.
Warships ordered to relieve the sur
vivors were unable * o approach the
cn : > pt , owing to the changed configura
tion of the straits of Messina. Ulti
mately a torpedo boat ran close to the
cniii-t , but was unable to discover a
trace of the city. Where a few days
Before stood the homes and works of
men and busy strets there was found
nothing but chaotic rocks and earth.
The city had vanished as completely
as Aladdin's palace under the magi
cian's spell. Observations indicate that
Reggie was completely swallowed by
the earth's collapsing beneath it and
the yawning site was filled by the sea
which advanced in a huge wave there ,
as at Messina. Only five of the city's
50.000 inhabitants have been account
ed for. These unhappy wretches reach
ed Cattanzaro and Palmi half de
mented by fright. One of these was
an army officer who telegraphed to
Rome that the city had been entirely
destroyed and that the dead were num-
IKM-ICSS.
They were scarcely able to talk in
telligibly , but their incoherent stories
were sufficient to confirm the fate of
the cjty. One of them was mainly
impressed by having seen the sea over
the cathedral. Others were deafened
by the roar of the sea and falling
houses , which they compare to the
roar of heavy artillery.
The ministry of marine at Rome re
ceived wireless reports of the obstruc
tion of the strait of Messina , showing
its safe navigation to be impossible
until it is rechartecl , while its future
navigation is likely to be extremely
dulicult. The tidal wave wrecked the
lighthouses in the strait , including
ro beacon , and thev crashed into the
SCENE DURING A FORMER QUAKE.
H <
Terror stricken inhabitants of Monteleone , Calabria , rushing from
their ruined houses in search of safety diiring the disaster of 1905.
In Sicily , and Reggie di Calabria , on
the mainland. They comprise about
4,400 square miles. The rock of Cha
rybdis now blocks the entrance to the
strait of Messina. Several hundred
persons perished and much damage
was done outside of these provinces ,
but within them the devastation was
BO complete that scarcely a human
habitation remains.
Upheaval Luxt.s H SeeomlN. .
All accounts agree that the time oc
cupied by nature's gigantic spasms was
but thirty-two zeconds. Some minutes
\ \ \
. The news caused a deep impres-
si.m in Koine , for its consequences
frm commercial and military points
of view will be incalculable.
Other ( owns and villageon : both
sides of the strait of .Messina have
bei-n leveled to the ground and nothing
lur ruins are left to indicate where
they formerly stood.
One hundred and fifty guests of the
Hotel Trinacria , eighty of them Kn-
gliih and American tourists , died bec-
noith the walls of their hostelry. Few
of tthsir bodies ever will be recovered.
V
( OKIE. cS A-T CK FOR-
OP
TOWNS WRECKED BY THE QUAEE
The towns in Sicily and sotithern
Italy reported wrecked by the earth
quake are as follows :
Messina , Sicily Population , 150,000 ;
wrecked by earthquake and swept by
tidal wave ; loss of life enormous.
Catania Third largest town in Sicily ,
in ruins.
Patcrno , Kicily Tan miles northwest
of Catania , 15,000 ; & heap of smoldering
ruins.
Vittoria. Sicily Town of 17,000 , on
the Camarine river ; wrecked.
Xaro , Sicily Population , 11,000 ; half
destroyed.
AH Fifteen miles southwest of Mes
sina , one of the most ancient towns in
island ; population , 2,000 ; badly dam-
nged.
nged.Mineo.
Mineo. Sicily Ninety-six miles north
west of Catania ; badly damaged.
Patti On the north coast of Sicily ;
wrecked.
Castorcal Population , 7GOO ; twelve
miles southwest of Milazzo ; badly
wrecked.
Palmi , Calabria On the southwest
coast ; population. 14,000 ; in ruins.
Reggie , Calabria Population , 4,500 ;
across the Strait of Messina from the
city of Messina ; reported completely de
stroyed.
Scilla , Calabria Reported destroyed.
Bagnara Sixteen miles northeast of
Reggie ; population , 7,000 ; reported wiped
out.
for they were cremated in the confla
gration that raged between the earth
quake and the tidal wave. Efforts to
overcome the fire in Messina were
fruitless , owing to the quantity of
wood among the ruins. Many victims
who were buried alive were burned to
death.
: Ue.ssiuu "YV'jirjietl Often.
Messina experienced a similar dis
aster in 17SS. She had then the same
preliminary warnings during the pre
vious four or five years that she had
recently in 1005 and 1007. Both Mes
sina and Reggie are on the seismic
line of contact or boundary between
the primary and secondary formations
\\hich separate Mount Etna and Mount
Vesuvius. It is a veritable storm cen
ter of earthquakes , yet Messina stayed
for this last lesson in the light of mod
ern scientific knowledge.
This last overwhelming calamity will
alter the future history of Sicily and
southern Italy. It will be regarded as
certain that a considerable portion of
the population of this fair land will
bow before the wrath of the gods and
seek homes elsewhere.
RED CROSS RELIEF STARTED.
Appeal Is Issued for Money for the
Kartltqnakc Sufferers.
The American National Red Cross
sent out telegraphic requests to all of
its branches for relief funds to be applied
to the sufferers from the earthquake in
suuthe.rn Italy. The Italian Red Cross
Society , being so fully organized , it will
not be necessary for the American so
ciety to do more tlia'i to send money con
tributions , which will be done as promptly
as possible.
The Rod Cross will hnve to v.ait until
contributions are tweivcrl in r" > nnnse to
the appeal sent out ns ( ho b.ilanco re-
m.inhg ; in th" treasury is Iru $12.000 ,
which will be kept in reserve for emer
gencies within the United States. On
the occasion of the eruption of Vesuvius
$12.iX0 ! was sent to Italy by the Ameri
can society. There arc no American naval
vessels in the vicinity of southern Italy.
SEA SWALLOWS II ? ISLANDS.
Entire Lipari Group in Mediter
ranean Is Engulfed.
A wireless message to Vita from the
Strait of Messina reported that the
Lipari .Islands , a volcanic group in the
Mediterranean near Sicily , have disap-
> eared. The population of the group
lumber 28,000 , and all must inevitably
have perished. The Liparian Islands
lie to the north of the northeastern
section of the Island of Sicily. The
group consists of numerous islands , and
is part of the Province of Messina.
The entire sea front of Reggie was
swept away , the public buildings were
laid in ruins and the whole lower town
inundated by the tidal wave. Now what
is left of the town on higher ground
is steadily sinking and may be swallow
ed by the sea.
It was decided that when all hope of
saving the wounded should disappear ,
warships -would bombard Messina to
bury the bodies under the ruins and
prevent an epidemic. By this terrible
act that scene of beauty and human ac
tivity which bore the name of Messina
will have forever ceased to exist. Mes
sina already looks like a town that has
been 'bombarded for hours by a great
tleet. Not a house remains standing.
Of the city's 1GOUOO inhabitants it is
still impossible to say how many per
ished. In any case it is safe to say
that 100.000 persons were buried be
neath the wreckage.
In thirty seconds Italy lost more of
her children than did Russia in a whole
year of her war with Japan , which was
the most sanguinary in history. It
seems certain that all the small towns
and villages that dotted the shore and
hills near Regtrio have been annihilated.
Without countijr the lesser centers of
population , the following have been al
most entirely destroyed : M'-ssina. ' KiO-
( KiO : Reggio. nn.CSJO : Lacro : , : ' , .000 ;
Scylla , 5.000 : Bajruair. . 10.000 : Villa
San Giovanni , 12ni-o : , and IV.imi. 1-1,000.
Inland towns ; iml villages , too. have
suffered enormously. The Strait of Mes
sina may , indeed , be said to have been
the center of the cataclysm , which
spread to the right and left , overwhelm
ing cities and killing thousands upon
thousands. King Victor Emmanuel has
determined to urge the abandonment of
the earthquake region as a place for
human habitation.
TERRITORY OF CALABRIA.
IiihnliitnntM I.ivcin Primitive \Vry
Speak Queer Diilci'i.i.
Calabria has one and one-thud million
infliabitants. The inhabitants spr-ak Hre
f-inn or Albanian dialects or an antique
Italian. Many communities arc isolated ,
without roads , schools or markets , wheth
er of goods or edibles. Bread is often
unknown , and the people live on IHMUS ,
peas , and potatoes. Stuffs lacking , they
cover themselves partially with skins ,
like primitive savages. They tend flocks
and herds in th" immemorial way.
All who can do so emigrate to far coun-
tri' s and the rest hide away in the moun
tains. Their vilves ! : are built on the
ill in soil of the rocky hills that receive
the full shock of the frequent earthquakes
and are of the lenst stable and homogene
ous gpolo--ic formation. The houses are
built of small stores set in mud mortar
and with steep roofs just the architec
ture to suffer most from seismic shak
ings.
SOUTH -DRY" ; WAR ON ,
Alabama. North Carolina and r.lisss- :
stppi Are No\v Prohibition.
The v.avo of tr ; iKiv..ee which has
driven ( h. > saloons out of the States or
! he S'.uMi became o.Tcctive Friday. The
I-itv baui > Lii- triiloors ! from Ala
bama. Mississippi and North Carolina
went into effect at midnight. The
morning of the new year found State
wide prohibition in these three States.
Other Southern States are already dryer
or nearly so. The liquor men have re
tained an imposing array of counsel
and will test the laws in the courts.
The Tennessee Legislature will cer
tainly will certainly be asked to cre
ate prohibition in that commonwealth.
Virginia is hewing nearer and nearer
to the line of prohibition , and is at
least 00 per cent prohibition now. In
Louisiana the Gay-Shattuck saloon reg
ulation law has closed many barrooms
and many parishes of the State li-ive
driven out the saloons by voting for
prohibition under the local option law.
In ( Jeorgia many of the purveyors of
"netsr-beer. " the oiily intoxicant which
can be s ; > ! d in the State , are closing
up , saying they cannot pay a $200 II-
cenre jr.st imposed. The rural sections ,
of Kentucky have been for some time
largely "dry. "
The lorgest single step toward gen
eral prohibition in the South was tak
en Friday. Georgia is the only ether
State wherein statutory prohibition ex
ists , the law having been in operation
one year.
Having won their Stale-wide lights
in four States , the anti-saloon forces
have greatly enlarged the Sontifs "dry"
area , and they are now lining up for
early campaigns in several other States
where prohibition Iris assumed the
magnitude of a political issue. In Tex
as and Arkansas the voters probably
will be called upon this summer to de
cide a constitutional amendment for
prohibition.
The Montgomery ( Ala. ) liquor men
will test the law. This much has been
decided upon. Leon Weil of one of
the largest law firms of the South will
d"inand ? i license , and on being refused
will join with Mobile in testing the
legality of the act.
F.02 SAPS ; GET $20,000.
rrck.sii < ii in rVew Vurlc Aistotmd
Police by lioldiic.H.M.
After wrenching twelve sti-el bars from
rt cellar window , expert cracksmen work
ed for a long time in plain sight of the
street in an effort to pick the lock on
the safe of Oscar C. Jackie , j vcler , SG6
Third avenue. New York , finally accom
plished their purpose and made away
with property valued at from $5,000 to
$20,000. After vainly attempting to bore
through the steel door of the safe , which
stood under a lighted gsis jet in plain
view of the street , the burglars managed
to pry the combination dial from the safe
and through the small opening left manip
ulated the bolts and levers so as to re
lease the lock.
The only theory on which the police
can explain die successful consummation
of the robbery is that the cracksmen had
accomplices posted outside the store to
signal to them when the policeman on the
beat or late passers-by approached the
store.
GRISCOM RETIRES ON MARCH 4.
OJHcial Confirmation of Ambassador's
Ile.sisnn.tion Given Out.
The resignation of Lloyd C. Griscom ,
ambassador to Italy , reported in a dis
patch from Rome , was authoritatively con
firmed by the State Department in Wash
ington. Ambassador Griscom's resigna
tion takes effect March 4. Mr. Griscom
lias had a distinguished career in the
diplomatic service of the United States.
His first service in that field was as secretary -
rotary to the ambassador to Great Britain
in 1803. On July 24 , ISOO. he became
secretary of the legation at Constantinople
and two years later was appointed envoy
extraordinary and minister plenipoten
tiary to Persia. He was appointed Unit
ed States minister ti > Japan Dec. 10 ,
1002. serving in thft country until Jan.
20. 19CHJ. when he was. appointed ambas
sador to Brazil. President Roosevelt
named him ambassador extraordinary and
plenipotentiary to Italy Dec. 10 , 100)J. )
PASTOR ENDS LIFE WITH RAZOR
Searching 1'Jirty Fimls lillsuMer
Demi in Ai nrt iei < .s.
Failing to arrive at church where his
congregation had assembled for worship ,
a searching party was formed to search
for Rt > v. Robert C' . IionzriiTty , pastor of
the Congregational ehurc h at Buchanan ,
N. D. Visiting his apartments over the
Buchanan Stale Bank , the minister was
found lying in a pool of blood , with the
razor with which he had cut his throat
gripped in his hand. A rambling note
was found on a ti : ! e. This note was evi
dently written Dec. 2H. on which day he
borrowed a. revolver from a neighbor , but
his courage failed him th n. Mr. Dougb
erty was formerly in Kansas City.
Two more Marathon r.ices are being
arranc d for Madi < ou Square Gardc-a ,
New York.
The 'J-year-old colt General Watts ,
2:00 : % . will not be raced next year , as
intended by 'his ' owner.
Former Amateur Billiard Champion
Fred Conklin defeated Calvin Demarost ,
present holder of the amateur champion
ship , but who has recently become a pro
fessional , in the first of a six-game han
dicap contest , by a score of o50 to
in Chicago.
Mr. Geers , during his career on the
turf , has driven twenty-four trotters to
records of 2 :10 or better , the fastest one
being The Abbot , 2:03i,4.
ISOLATION TOR CONSUMPTIVES/
Dr. "Wiley Advises Radical Treatment
for the Afflicted Who Travel.
It is estimated that 1(10.000 ( persons
die annually in the United States from
consumption , or tuberculosis , ami from
: inyviy we look
at it this is a
dreadful figure to
consider.
If this tremend
ous loss to the
country occurred
annually by < he de
struction of the
population of some
splendid city ol'
JCO.OOO from some
DR. WILEY. preventable cause ,
all the strength and power of the gov
ernment would he stretched forth to
put a stop to the calamity ; yet quietly
and insidiously tuberculosis is yearly
effet-tin.tr this fearful loss oC life and
the government as well as individuals
seems to he just getting awake to the
great possibilities of the case.
In every city and considerable vill.tge
in the United States there should he
provided , under authority of law , un or
ganization for the prevention and cure
of tuberculosis under the supervision of
medical men. These organizations
should be provided with . iceommoua-
tions for the treatment of incipient and
advanced cases of Uie disease and
should also have authority to safe
guard those who are predisposed by
enforcing hygienic conditions.
The advanced or incurables should
lv separated from the incipient or cur
able cases as they are the centers of
infection and the greatest danger to the
public.
The isolation of consumptives on
railroad journeys , particularly on sleep
ing car trips across the continent , is
urged by Dr. Harvey W. Wiley , chief
of the chemistry bureau of the Depart
ment of Agriculture. He points out
that separate cars for those alllicted
with tuberculosis are as necessary as
detention camps.
The spread of the disease by con
sumptives traveling on the railroads is
a -well-known danger , explains Dr. Wi
ley , who states that lie is arranging
apparatus to take samples of the ma
terial breathed by people in sleeping
cars. As soon as these are taken they
vrill be analyzed , with the general ob-
fcct in view of supplying fresh air to
those who travel.
Galveston ( Texas ) teamsters recently
formed a union.
Musicians at Charleston , S' . C. , recently
organized a union.
Postoffice clerks have chartered a new
union at Atlanta , Ga.
Asbestos workers at Denver , Colo. , are
preparing to organize.
In October 241 work people in Canada
were injured , and of these seventy-nine
died.
died.The
The metal trades department of the
American Federation of Labor is being
formed in Augusta , Ga.
Leather workers on horse goods expect
before 1910 to make a general demand for
the eight-hour day in the trade.
Trade unionists at Little Rock , Ark. ,
expect to bring up a number of labor
measures at the next session of the Leg
islature.
Stationary firemen and stationary en
gineers at Fort Worth , Texas , "have secur
ed an eight-hour day and an increase of
40 cents a day.
An effort will be made at San Fran
cisco to effect a permanent organization
of all trades and industries that have a
grievance against Asiatics.
The next biennial session o the grand
division of the Order of Railway Conduc
tors of America will be held in Boston in
May of next year.
In Austria and France the provision of
rescue apparatus in mines is made com
pulsory. In Germany it is optional , but
has been voluntarily adopted.
The jurisdictional strife between the
Freight Handlers' Union and the Order
of Railway Clerks was adjusted by a joint
agreement , each union giving way on
some points and accepting a compromise
on the membership.
Declaring the boycott to be unwise and
of general menace to tlie public , the gen
eral assembly of the Knights of Labor at
Washington recently went on record as
opposing flatly the program of the Amer
ican Federation of Labor.
As a result of a meeting of the shoot
metal workers of Lowell. Mass. , held re-
cntly , the employers voluntarily granted
the eight-hoar work day without reduc
tion in pay from the amount paid for the
previous nine-hour day.
The government plan of old-arre pen
sions goes into effect in Australia and
Neiv Zealand on July 1 , 1000. The plan
provides that every person of 05 years oi
age , who is permanently incapacitated for
vork , will be qualified to receive a pen
sion. By proclamation women of GO years
may be qualified.
In both England anil Scotland scveralu
rescue stations have been organized in
connection with experimental galleries
devised for the purpose of training col
liers in the methods of eifcvtive rescue
work in the event of explosions , pit fires
and other underground accidents.
Deuver. Colo. , will soon have a union
' .nor hospital , costing $200,000. and ac
commodating 350 to 400 persons. The
city is now the headquarters for the Na
tional Union Labor Hospital Association ,
which will proceed with the building of
hospitals for members of labor unions io
all large cities of the country.
