﻿286 
  OLDHAM 
  : 
  GREAT 
  EARTHQUAKE 
  OF 
  1897. 
  

  

  a 
  few 
  feet 
  below 
  the 
  surface. 
  After 
  the 
  earthquake 
  they 
  were 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  filled 
  

   with 
  sand. 
  The 
  sand 
  is 
  the 
  same 
  as 
  that 
  which 
  was 
  thrown 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  fissures, 
  and 
  

   is 
  a 
  rather 
  coarse 
  variety 
  containing 
  mush 
  muscovite. 
  At 
  Haripur, 
  in 
  Rangpur 
  

   district, 
  rolled 
  pieces 
  of 
  lignite 
  were 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  ejected 
  in 
  large 
  quantities 
  

   with 
  the 
  sand 
  : 
  it 
  is 
  therefore 
  highly 
  probable 
  that 
  the 
  sand 
  was 
  originally 
  derived 
  

   from 
  the 
  disintegration 
  of 
  the 
  coarse 
  tertiary 
  sandstones 
  which 
  are 
  seen 
  in 
  large 
  

   quantity 
  on 
  the 
  lower 
  slopes 
  of 
  the 
  nearest 
  range 
  of 
  the 
  Himalayas. 
  

  

  Sand 
  was 
  thus 
  ejected 
  in 
  every 
  part 
  of 
  Northern 
  Bengal 
  visited 
  by 
  me 
  ; 
  

   and 
  the 
  quantity 
  thrown 
  up 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  enormous; 
  for 
  lines 
  of 
  sand, 
  four 
  or 
  

   five 
  yards 
  in 
  width, 
  are 
  often 
  seen 
  running 
  almost 
  uninterruptedly 
  for 
  miles 
  

   parallel 
  to 
  the 
  railway. 
  In 
  this 
  sand 
  occur 
  numerous 
  vents, 
  either 
  in 
  the 
  form 
  of 
  

   conical 
  hollows 
  or 
  of 
  small 
  cones 
  built 
  up 
  of 
  sand 
  to 
  a 
  height 
  of 
  several 
  inches. 
  

   These 
  vary 
  in 
  width 
  from 
  a 
  few 
  inches 
  to 
  about 
  10 
  feet 
  : 
  the 
  latter 
  size 
  is 
  rare, 
  the 
  

   more 
  usual 
  width 
  being 
  from 
  1 
  to 
  3 
  feet. 
  These 
  are 
  well 
  seen 
  on 
  the 
  Kuch 
  Bihar 
  

   branch 
  between 
  Teesta 
  and 
  Dewan 
  Hat. 
  The 
  amount 
  of 
  sand 
  ejected 
  is 
  variable 
  

   but 
  in 
  some 
  places 
  it 
  covers 
  the 
  ground 
  to 
  a 
  depth 
  of 
  over 
  a 
  foot, 
  as 
  on 
  the 
  chur 
  

   between 
  Moghal 
  Hat 
  and 
  Gitaldaha, 
  where 
  the 
  railway 
  has 
  been 
  buried 
  for 
  about 
  

   200 
  yards 
  under 
  some 
  8 
  inches 
  of 
  sand. 
  

  

  Between 
  Rangpur 
  and 
  Kaunia 
  the 
  railway 
  line 
  was 
  much 
  damaged 
  ; 
  the 
  

   permanent 
  way 
  was 
  fissured 
  and, 
  in 
  places, 
  completely 
  undermined. 
  Bridges 
  are 
  

   broken, 
  that 
  over 
  the 
  Monas 
  river 
  having 
  been 
  rendered 
  unfit 
  for 
  traffic. 
  This 
  

   Mo 
  as 
  Bridee 
  bridge 
  consists 
  of 
  three 
  steel 
  girders 
  supported 
  on 
  

  

  hollow 
  cylindrical 
  iron 
  piers, 
  and 
  resting 
  at 
  each 
  bank 
  on 
  

   brick 
  abutments. 
  The 
  fissures 
  which 
  opened 
  along 
  the 
  river 
  bank 
  completely 
  

   destroyed 
  the 
  abutments, 
  while 
  the 
  piers 
  have 
  been 
  tilted 
  as 
  much 
  as 
  15 
  from 
  

   the 
  vertical, 
  and 
  the 
  ends 
  of 
  the 
  girders 
  no 
  longer 
  rest 
  on 
  them. 
  

  

  All 
  along 
  this 
  line, 
  the 
  distortion 
  of 
  the 
  rails 
  is 
  very 
  marked 
  : 
  they 
  have 
  been 
  

   displaced 
  and 
  bent 
  in 
  an 
  east 
  and 
  west 
  direction 
  : 
  this 
  distortion 
  has 
  usually 
  been 
  to 
  

   the 
  west, 
  but 
  in 
  a 
  good 
  many 
  cases 
  it 
  has 
  taken 
  place 
  in 
  the 
  opposite 
  direction* 
  

   In 
  a 
  north 
  and 
  south 
  direction, 
  the 
  ground 
  has 
  been 
  thrown 
  into 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  folds 
  and 
  

   undulations 
  ; 
  the 
  whole 
  effect 
  being 
  that 
  of 
  an 
  enormous 
  " 
  switch-back." 
  Places 
  

   formerly 
  level 
  have 
  risen 
  or 
  fallen, 
  and 
  differences 
  of 
  level, 
  often 
  amounting 
  to 
  

   several 
  feet, 
  are 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  space 
  of 
  a 
  few 
  hundred 
  yards. 
  The 
  effect 
  of 
  the 
  

   motion 
  producing 
  these 
  undulations 
  has 
  been 
  to 
  develop 
  pulls 
  and 
  thrusts 
  in 
  the 
  

   rails. 
  Where 
  they 
  have 
  been 
  in 
  tension, 
  adjacent 
  tails 
  have 
  drawn 
  away 
  from 
  one 
  

   another 
  at 
  the 
  ends, 
  breaking 
  bolts 
  and 
  fish-plates, 
  and 
  where 
  they 
  have 
  under- 
  

   gone 
  compression, 
  the 
  rails 
  have 
  been 
  distorted, 
  usually 
  in 
  the 
  centre, 
  and 
  often 
  

   with 
  such 
  force 
  that 
  the 
  rail 
  has 
  broken. 
  

  

  Returning 
  now 
  to 
  the 
  places 
  of 
  interest 
  between 
  Rangpur 
  and 
  Kuch 
  Bihar, 
  

   we 
  find 
  that 
  at 
  Kaunia 
  much 
  damage 
  has 
  been 
  done: 
  

   Kaunia. 
  thg 
  trans 
  hjp 
  men 
  t-inspector's 
  bungalow 
  was 
  completely 
  

  

  wrecked, 
  while 
  the 
  land 
  in 
  front 
  of 
  it 
  was 
  much 
  fissured 
  and 
  sand 
  and 
  water 
  rushed 
  

   out. 
  An 
  interesting 
  fact 
  as 
  regards 
  the 
  difference 
  of 
  period 
  of 
  consecutive 
  waves 
  

   is 
  well 
  exemplified 
  at 
  Kaunia: 
  if 
  we 
  take 
  a 
  line 
  running 
  north 
  and 
  south 
  through 
  the 
  

   bungalow 
  just 
  mentioned, 
  we 
  find 
  that 
  much 
  damage 
  has 
  been 
  done 
  along 
  that 
  

  

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  286 
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