﻿NARRATIVE 
  ACCOUNTS, 
  2! 
  

  

  u 
  At 
  Isvarganj 
  office 
  I 
  found 
  that 
  a 
  large 
  crack 
  had 
  opened 
  in 
  the 
  ground 
  

   through 
  the 
  office, 
  this 
  was 
  about 
  five 
  feet 
  wide, 
  and 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  i 
  could 
  judge 
  

   about 
  15 
  feet 
  deep 
  ; 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  office 
  had 
  fallen 
  into 
  it. 
  At 
  Ramgopalpur 
  I 
  

   found 
  the 
  office, 
  which 
  is 
  in 
  the 
  lower 
  floor 
  of 
  the 
  gate 
  house 
  of 
  the 
  zamindar's 
  

   house, 
  was 
  merely 
  a 
  heap 
  of 
  bricks 
  and 
  plaster. 
  

  

  " 
  All 
  along 
  the 
  road 
  into 
  Mymensing 
  where 
  numbers 
  of 
  cracks 
  and 
  crevices, 
  

   some 
  five 
  and 
  six 
  feet 
  wide, 
  rendering 
  the 
  road 
  impassable 
  for 
  wheel 
  traffic, 
  some 
  

   of 
  these 
  had 
  opened 
  on 
  the 
  site 
  of 
  a 
  telegraph 
  post, 
  and 
  the 
  whole 
  socket 
  and 
  

   subplate 
  could 
  be 
  seen, 
  the 
  post 
  leaning 
  up 
  against 
  the 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  crevice 
  having 
  

   slipped 
  down 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  the 
  subplate 
  would 
  permit 
  it 
  to 
  go." 
  

  

  From 
  the 
  same 
  district 
  I 
  have 
  also 
  a 
  copy 
  of 
  a 
  letter 
  addressed 
  

  

  by 
  Babu 
  Hiranmoy 
  Mukerji, 
  of 
  Muktagachha, 
  to 
  the 
  Chief 
  Secretary 
  

  

  to 
  the 
  Government 
  of 
  Bengal, 
  which 
  I 
  reproduce 
  as 
  a 
  clear 
  and 
  

  

  simple 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  earthquake, 
  besides 
  expressing 
  the 
  views 
  of 
  

  

  an 
  important 
  section 
  of 
  our 
  fellow 
  subjects 
  on 
  the 
  cause 
  and 
  cure 
  

  

  of 
  such 
  catastrophes 
  of 
  nature. 
  

  

  " 
  I 
  have 
  the 
  honour 
  to 
  submit 
  the 
  following 
  report 
  on 
  the 
  effects 
  of 
  earthquake 
  

   in 
  the 
  District 
  of 
  Mymensingh, 
  so 
  far 
  as 
  I 
  have 
  been 
  able 
  to 
  ascertain, 
  for 
  the 
  

   information 
  of 
  Government 
  ; 
  and 
  to 
  suggest 
  certain 
  measures 
  for 
  palliation 
  of 
  the 
  

   mischief 
  done 
  by 
  the 
  earthquake, 
  for 
  such 
  notice 
  as 
  the 
  Government 
  will 
  be 
  pleased 
  

   to 
  take 
  of 
  them. 
  

  

  " 
  2. 
  The 
  shocks 
  were 
  felt 
  at 
  5*6 
  in 
  the 
  afternoon 
  of 
  the 
  12th 
  June 
  1897, 
  and 
  

   their 
  duration 
  was 
  about 
  five 
  minutes. 
  The 
  shocks 
  were 
  preceded 
  by 
  a 
  very 
  grave 
  

   sound 
  like 
  that 
  of 
  a 
  distant 
  thunder, 
  and 
  were 
  so 
  violent 
  in 
  nature 
  that 
  the 
  earth 
  

   swayed 
  like 
  a 
  cradle 
  with 
  all 
  the 
  contents 
  upon 
  it. 
  The 
  waving 
  of 
  the 
  house-tops 
  

   above 
  and 
  the 
  rending 
  of 
  the 
  earth 
  below 
  were 
  something 
  very 
  awful 
  to 
  look 
  at. 
  

   And 
  so 
  long 
  as 
  the 
  shocks 
  continued, 
  nobody 
  could 
  stand 
  on 
  his 
  legs, 
  but 
  had 
  to 
  

   stoop 
  down 
  and 
  cling 
  to 
  the 
  earth 
  as 
  fast 
  as 
  he 
  could 
  with 
  both 
  the 
  hands 
  and 
  

   feet, 
  expecting 
  nothing 
  but 
  death 
  at 
  every 
  moment. 
  After 
  the 
  first 
  quake 
  was 
  over 
  

   there 
  was 
  a 
  temporary 
  rest. 
  Again, 
  from 
  the 
  evening, 
  the 
  shocks 
  were 
  felt 
  at 
  

   quick 
  intervals 
  during 
  the 
  whole 
  of 
  the 
  night 
  and 
  the 
  whole 
  of 
  the 
  next 
  day. 
  And 
  

   even 
  though 
  the 
  force 
  was 
  much 
  abated, 
  yet 
  it 
  was 
  sufficient 
  to 
  create 
  a 
  good 
  deal 
  

   of 
  uneasiness 
  amongst 
  men 
  for 
  the 
  safety 
  of 
  their 
  lives. 
  From 
  the 
  second 
  day 
  

   the 
  shocks 
  continued 
  with 
  gradually 
  less 
  and 
  less 
  force, 
  lasting 
  for 
  a 
  minute 
  or 
  

   less, 
  rocking 
  the 
  houses 
  and 
  tilings, 
  and 
  either 
  making 
  the 
  smaller 
  cracks 
  in 
  the 
  

   buildings 
  wider 
  and 
  wider, 
  or 
  causing 
  those 
  collapse 
  in 
  which 
  wider 
  cracks 
  were 
  

   made 
  by 
  the 
  first 
  shock. 
  The 
  shocks 
  continued 
  up 
  to 
  20th 
  July 
  1897, 
  though 
  of 
  

   course 
  their 
  number 
  and 
  force 
  lessened 
  every 
  day. 
  

  

  "3. 
  As 
  the 
  effects 
  of 
  the 
  earthquake 
  are 
  generally 
  the 
  same 
  everywhere 
  in 
  

   the 
  district, 
  I 
  think 
  it 
  is 
  unnecessary 
  to 
  describe 
  what 
  took 
  place 
  in 
  every 
  village 
  

   and 
  town. 
  It 
  would 
  be 
  sufficient, 
  I 
  think, 
  to 
  give 
  a 
  general 
  summary 
  of 
  the 
  

   whole. 
  

  

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