﻿6 
  OLDHAM: 
  GREAT 
  EARTHQUAKE 
  OF 
  1897. 
  

  

  covered 
  with 
  piaster. 
  About 
  half 
  the 
  buildings 
  of 
  this 
  description 
  are 
  ruined 
  in 
  the 
  

   same 
  way 
  as 
  the 
  stone 
  buildings. 
  All 
  the 
  large 
  ekra 
  buildings 
  are 
  utterly 
  ruined 
  

   inside, 
  the 
  chimneys 
  in 
  all 
  cases 
  being 
  of 
  stone 
  work, 
  the 
  whole 
  of 
  which 
  has 
  fallen 
  

   with 
  the 
  plaster 
  from 
  the 
  walls, 
  and 
  in 
  many 
  cases 
  the 
  roofs 
  also. 
  

  

  " 
  Small 
  outhouses 
  and 
  villages 
  of 
  ekra-work 
  have 
  in 
  some 
  cases 
  escaped 
  with 
  

   the 
  loss 
  of 
  the 
  plaster. 
  Some 
  of 
  the 
  new 
  larger 
  buildings 
  would 
  also 
  have 
  escaped, 
  

   but 
  for 
  the 
  stone 
  chimneys, 
  which 
  have 
  in 
  every 
  case 
  wrecked 
  the 
  house. 
  

  

  "3. 
  Plonk 
  Buildings.— 
  Built 
  on 
  the 
  "log 
  hut" 
  principle, 
  a 
  wooden 
  frame 
  

   work 
  covered 
  with 
  planks, 
  resting 
  unattached 
  on 
  the 
  ground. 
  The 
  only 
  buildings 
  

   of 
  this 
  description 
  were 
  stables 
  or 
  outhouses. 
  In 
  every 
  case 
  they 
  have 
  escaped 
  

   untouched, 
  except 
  where 
  the 
  supporting 
  stone 
  work 
  has 
  been 
  shaken 
  away, 
  when 
  

   they 
  have 
  been 
  slightly 
  displaced. 
  

  

  " 
  Trees 
  in 
  Shillong 
  have 
  not 
  suffered 
  much, 
  two 
  only 
  were 
  brought 
  down 
  by 
  

   the 
  shock, 
  and 
  as 
  they 
  were 
  leaning 
  over 
  to 
  Begin 
  with, 
  their 
  direction 
  of 
  falling 
  

   does 
  not 
  give 
  any 
  evidence. 
  

  

  "In 
  Shillong 
  itself 
  the 
  roads 
  and 
  hillsides 
  are 
  cracked 
  in 
  all 
  directions, 
  but 
  the 
  

   cracks 
  merely 
  show 
  the 
  lines 
  of 
  weakness 
  in 
  the 
  ground, 
  

   which 
  has 
  been 
  simply 
  shaken 
  down 
  by 
  the 
  violent 
  

   vibration, 
  which 
  has 
  apparently 
  acted 
  in 
  every 
  direction. 
  

  

  u 
  Small 
  banks 
  of 
  earth 
  have 
  been 
  flattened 
  everywhere, 
  and 
  the 
  band 
  of 
  

   the 
  artificial 
  lake 
  — 
  a 
  bank 
  some 
  150 
  yards 
  long 
  and 
  30 
  or 
  40 
  feet 
  high, 
  made 
  

   mostly 
  of 
  earth, 
  gave 
  way 
  almost 
  at 
  once 
  when 
  the 
  great 
  shock 
  began. 
  The 
  centre 
  

   half 
  of 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  carried 
  bodily 
  away 
  down 
  the 
  valley 
  below 
  by 
  the 
  rush 
  of 
  

   water. 
  

  

  " 
  On 
  the 
  hills 
  round 
  Shillong 
  four 
  or 
  five 
  considerable 
  landslips 
  can 
  be 
  seen. 
  

   Patches 
  of 
  hillside 
  debris 
  have 
  fallen 
  from 
  steep 
  nala 
  banks, 
  carrying 
  trees 
  and 
  

   undergrowth 
  with 
  them, 
  and 
  marked 
  now 
  as 
  patches 
  of 
  red 
  soil 
  on 
  the 
  hiil 
  — 
  the 
  

   largest 
  is 
  about 
  300 
  feet 
  in 
  width 
  and 
  the 
  same 
  in 
  height." 
  

  

  Another 
  account 
  which 
  may 
  be 
  reproduced 
  is 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  Assis- 
  

   tant 
  Superintendent 
  of 
  Telegraphs, 
  Shillong 
  Division, 
  contained 
  in 
  his 
  

   official 
  letter 
  No. 
  1473, 
  dated 
  12th 
  July 
  1897, 
  Shillong, 
  an 
  d 
  addressed 
  

   to 
  the 
  Director 
  General 
  of 
  Telegraphs. 
  According 
  to 
  this, 
  — 
  

  

  " 
  The 
  shock 
  which 
  levelled 
  Shillong 
  was 
  immediately 
  preceded 
  by 
  a 
  milder 
  

   shock 
  which 
  did 
  no 
  damage, 
  this 
  was 
  of 
  a 
  greater 
  severity 
  than 
  the 
  shocks 
  usually 
  

   experienced 
  in 
  Shillong. 
  This 
  milder 
  shock 
  seemed 
  to 
  die 
  away, 
  but 
  without 
  

   absolutely 
  ceasing, 
  it 
  suddenly 
  developed 
  into 
  a 
  most 
  destructive 
  earthquake, 
  which 
  

   r.o 
  building 
  or 
  structure 
  withstood 
  for 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  couple 
  of 
  seconds. 
  The 
  

   rumbling 
  which 
  accompanied 
  the 
  first 
  shock 
  increased 
  in 
  volume 
  as 
  the 
  shock 
  

   increased 
  in 
  severity. 
  By 
  that 
  time 
  I 
  was 
  outside, 
  between 
  my 
  own 
  bungalow 
  

   and 
  another 
  one 
  not 
  30 
  yards 
  from 
  it. 
  The 
  noise 
  of 
  the 
  earthquake 
  was 
  so 
  great 
  

   that 
  I 
  could 
  not 
  hear 
  the 
  falling 
  of 
  the 
  stone 
  chimneys 
  in 
  either 
  of 
  the 
  two 
  

   bungalows, 
  nor 
  the 
  noise 
  of 
  the 
  fall 
  of 
  part 
  of 
  my 
  bungalow. 
  As 
  soon 
  as 
  the 
  

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  6 
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