﻿INTRODUCTORY. 
  3 
  

  

  which 
  the 
  disaster 
  was 
  met 
  and 
  the 
  complete 
  interruption 
  of 
  com- 
  

   munications 
  remedied. 
  These 
  matters 
  are 
  dealt 
  with 
  in 
  the 
  official 
  

   reports 
  of 
  the 
  Governments 
  of 
  Assam 
  and 
  Bengal, 
  in 
  the 
  Adminis- 
  

   tration 
  Reports 
  of 
  those 
  Governments, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  annual 
  reports 
  

   of 
  the 
  Imperial 
  and 
  Provincial 
  Departments 
  which 
  were 
  affected. 
  

   Besides 
  these 
  an 
  excellent 
  summary 
  of 
  this 
  aspect 
  of 
  the 
  earthquake 
  

   has 
  been 
  given, 
  in 
  an 
  easily 
  accessible 
  form, 
  1 
  by 
  Mr. 
  H. 
  Luttman- 
  

   Johnson, 
  formerly 
  Commissioner 
  of 
  the 
  Assam 
  Valley 
  Districts. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  notices 
  of 
  the 
  earthquake 
  which 
  have 
  been 
  published 
  

   previous 
  to 
  this, 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  described 
  as 
  the 
  Calcutta, 
  the 
  Assam, 
  

   the 
  Indian, 
  or 
  merely 
  the, 
  earthquake 
  of 
  12th 
  June 
  1897. 
  The 
  first 
  of 
  

   these 
  titles 
  is 
  obviously 
  inappropriate, 
  for 
  Calcutta 
  was 
  nowhere 
  near 
  

   the 
  focus, 
  nor 
  was 
  the 
  earthquake 
  so 
  severe 
  there 
  as 
  at 
  many 
  other 
  

   places. 
  The 
  second 
  title, 
  though 
  better, 
  seems 
  still 
  too 
  limited, 
  for 
  

   the 
  province 
  of 
  Assam 
  covers 
  but 
  a 
  small 
  proportion 
  of 
  the 
  area 
  

   affected 
  by 
  the 
  earthquake, 
  nor 
  did 
  the 
  focus 
  lie 
  entirely 
  beneath 
  the 
  

   area 
  covered 
  by 
  the 
  province 
  of 
  Assam. 
  The 
  term 
  Indian 
  is 
  better, 
  

   for, 
  not 
  only 
  was 
  it 
  felt 
  over 
  a 
  large 
  part 
  of 
  India, 
  but 
  the 
  greater 
  

   part 
  of 
  the 
  whole 
  area 
  over 
  which 
  it 
  was 
  felt, 
  falls 
  within 
  the 
  limits 
  

   of 
  the 
  Indian 
  Empire. 
  Even 
  this 
  name 
  is 
  not, 
  however, 
  altogether 
  

   unexceptionable, 
  for 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  quarter 
  of 
  the 
  area 
  over 
  which 
  

   it 
  was 
  felt 
  lies 
  outside 
  the 
  limits 
  of 
  the 
  Indian 
  Empire, 
  while 
  not 
  

   more 
  than 
  about 
  a 
  third 
  can 
  be 
  said 
  to 
  lie 
  within 
  the 
  limits 
  of 
  India 
  

   proper. 
  

  

  In 
  fact, 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  possible 
  to 
  adopt 
  any 
  geographical 
  name 
  which 
  

   is 
  altogether 
  satisfactory, 
  nor 
  does 
  this 
  seem 
  necessary 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  

   of 
  the 
  greatest 
  earthquake 
  of 
  which 
  we 
  have 
  any 
  historic 
  record. 
  

   On 
  the 
  title 
  page 
  of 
  this 
  report 
  I 
  have 
  referred 
  to 
  it 
  simply 
  as 
  the 
  

   Great 
  Earthquake 
  of 
  12th 
  June 
  1897, 
  and 
  this 
  appear- 
  to 
  be 
  sufficient 
  

   to 
  distinguish 
  it 
  from 
  other, 
  and 
  lesser, 
  earthquakes. 
  

  

  In 
  dealing 
  with 
  the 
  earthquake, 
  1 
  shall 
  first 
  give 
  a 
  selection 
  from 
  

   the 
  numerous 
  accounts 
  received 
  by 
  me, 
  which 
  will 
  indicate 
  the 
  

  

  > 
  The 
  Earthquake 
  in 
  Assam. 
  Journal 
  of 
  the 
  Society 
  of 
  Arts, 
  XLVI, 
  473-493 
  (1898}. 
  

   B 
  2 
  ( 
  3 
  ) 
  

  

  