﻿l8 
  OLDHAM; 
  GREAT 
  EARTHQUAKE 
  OF 
  1897. 
  

  

  Dhubri 
  by 
  5 
  p.m. 
  It 
  seems 
  she 
  had 
  got 
  into 
  the 
  sand 
  at 
  about 
  7 
  a.m., 
  and 
  

   remained 
  in 
  it 
  till 
  1 
  p.m. 
  There 
  were 
  several 
  gaps 
  in 
  the 
  road 
  between 
  Jemadarhat 
  

   and 
  the 
  ferry 
  ghat, 
  but 
  none 
  over 
  2 
  feet 
  wide, 
  and 
  the 
  syce 
  instead 
  of 
  exercising 
  a 
  

   little 
  care 
  when 
  having 
  to 
  go 
  off 
  the 
  road, 
  took 
  the 
  shortest 
  cut 
  possible, 
  with 
  the 
  

   result 
  noted 
  by 
  me. 
  The 
  huge 
  gap 
  I 
  was 
  told 
  of 
  the 
  night 
  before 
  turned 
  out 
  to 
  be 
  

   a 
  myth. 
  

  

  " 
  On 
  returning 
  to 
  Dhubri, 
  everything 
  was 
  as 
  I 
  had 
  pictured 
  it 
  at 
  5 
  p.m. 
  the 
  

   previous 
  night. 
  The 
  town 
  is 
  in 
  ruins. 
  It 
  has 
  sunk 
  everywhere, 
  and 
  for 
  hundreds 
  

   of 
  feet 
  in 
  a 
  stretch 
  it 
  is 
  cracked 
  and 
  fissured. 
  The 
  dispensary 
  (main 
  building) 
  

   stands, 
  but 
  has 
  suffered 
  much. 
  It 
  is 
  built 
  on 
  iron 
  pillars, 
  and 
  its 
  brick 
  walls 
  are 
  

   only 
  about 
  12 
  feet 
  high 
  and 
  2 
  feet 
  thick 
  j 
  above, 
  its 
  walls 
  are 
  lath 
  and 
  plaster. 
  

   Hence 
  the 
  reason 
  it 
  has 
  stood. 
  The 
  cutcherry, 
  the 
  forest 
  house, 
  Local 
  Board 
  

   bungalow, 
  circuit-house, 
  the 
  club, 
  telegraph 
  office 
  and 
  telegraph 
  signallers' 
  

   quarters, 
  and 
  the 
  Gauripur 
  zamindars' 
  house 
  stand, 
  also 
  Leslie's 
  and 
  Maher's, 
  

   because 
  they 
  are 
  built 
  on 
  piles. 
  Of 
  course 
  the 
  plaster 
  and 
  lath 
  are 
  all 
  gone. 
  

   The 
  treasury, 
  Jewett's 
  house, 
  Jolly's 
  house, 
  the 
  dak 
  bungalow, 
  the 
  Bijni 
  Hall, 
  two 
  

   large 
  houses 
  at 
  the 
  immigration 
  depots, 
  the 
  liquor 
  shop 
  in 
  the 
  bazaar, 
  and 
  the 
  

   Muhammadan 
  musjid 
  and 
  my 
  house 
  still 
  stand, 
  but 
  are 
  dangerous 
  to 
  enter 
  and 
  

   must 
  all 
  be 
  dismantled. 
  The 
  post 
  office, 
  Hallifax's, 
  Bogribari 
  zamindar's 
  house, 
  

   the 
  high 
  school, 
  the 
  church, 
  the 
  Sikh 
  temple, 
  the 
  new 
  jail, 
  the 
  newly 
  built 
  magazine, 
  

   the 
  seven 
  newly 
  built 
  houses 
  in 
  the 
  dispensary 
  ground, 
  and 
  all 
  the 
  outhouses 
  of 
  

   every 
  single 
  brick-built 
  house 
  are 
  down 
  flat. 
  So 
  far, 
  only 
  one 
  fatal 
  case 
  has 
  been 
  

   reported, 
  and 
  this 
  a 
  native 
  child 
  about 
  5 
  years 
  of 
  age. 
  The 
  natives 
  are 
  all 
  

   panic-stricken, 
  are 
  living 
  on 
  the 
  roads, 
  in 
  boats, 
  and 
  in 
  steamer 
  flats, 
  and 
  seem 
  most 
  

   helpless 
  ; 
  the 
  better 
  classes 
  encamp 
  out 
  on 
  the 
  roads 
  during 
  the 
  night, 
  although 
  

   several 
  of 
  their 
  houses 
  are 
  safe. 
  Several 
  of 
  them 
  have, 
  however, 
  suffered 
  consider- 
  

   ably 
  ; 
  houses, 
  especially 
  those 
  built 
  on 
  new 
  reclaimed 
  land 
  near 
  the 
  Dhubri 
  back- 
  

   water, 
  have 
  subsided 
  a 
  good 
  deal 
  towards 
  the 
  back. 
  

  

  " 
  Just 
  beyond 
  the 
  front 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  jail 
  and 
  extending 
  for 
  nearly 
  a 
  quarter 
  of 
  a 
  

   mile 
  below 
  it 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  direction 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  bazaar, 
  the 
  land 
  has 
  subsided 
  quite 
  5 
  

   feet, 
  but 
  this 
  subsidence 
  is 
  not 
  so 
  great 
  as 
  we 
  get 
  further 
  away 
  from 
  the 
  jail 
  ; 
  in 
  

   fact 
  it 
  is 
  as 
  little 
  as 
  2 
  feet. 
  Unfortunately 
  for 
  the 
  station 
  this 
  subsidence 
  near 
  the 
  

   jail 
  is 
  all 
  but 
  communicating 
  with 
  the 
  river, 
  and 
  runs 
  parallel 
  to 
  it 
  behind 
  a 
  row 
  of 
  

   houses 
  situated 
  in 
  the 
  old 
  bazaar 
  on 
  the 
  river 
  bank. 
  As 
  soon 
  as 
  the 
  river 
  rises, 
  it 
  is 
  

   certain 
  to 
  flow 
  into 
  this 
  subsidence 
  (which 
  already 
  has 
  water 
  in 
  it), 
  and 
  then 
  there 
  

   will 
  be 
  one 
  steady 
  flow 
  from 
  the 
  river 
  right 
  on 
  into 
  the 
  recently-excavated 
  tank 
  in 
  

   connection 
  with 
  the 
  new 
  drainage 
  scheme 
  of 
  the 
  town. 
  Shortly 
  after 
  this 
  

   takes 
  place 
  we 
  shall, 
  I 
  think, 
  find 
  the 
  narrow 
  strip 
  of 
  land 
  between 
  this 
  

   tank 
  and 
  the 
  main 
  bank 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  will 
  be 
  non 
  est, 
  and 
  that 
  the 
  river 
  will 
  be 
  

   flowing 
  through 
  what 
  was 
  once 
  the 
  tank 
  and 
  continuing 
  its 
  onward 
  course 
  carrying 
  

   all 
  before 
  it 
  and 
  skirting 
  uncomfortably 
  near 
  the 
  new 
  bazaar. 
  

  

  " 
  The 
  station 
  drains 
  are 
  kutcha, 
  and 
  almost 
  every 
  drain 
  is 
  choked 
  up 
  with 
  

  

  sand 
  carried 
  up 
  from 
  the 
  cracks 
  up 
  to 
  or 
  very 
  nearly 
  on 
  a 
  level 
  with 
  the 
  roads. 
  

  

  '1 
  he 
  station 
  tanks 
  have 
  risen 
  considerably 
  and 
  some 
  overflowed. 
  In 
  several 
  of 
  

  

  them 
  islands 
  of 
  sand 
  are 
  visible, 
  clearly 
  showing 
  that, 
  though 
  the 
  tanks 
  are 
  full, 
  

  

  ( 
  IS 
  ) 
  

  

  