﻿320 
  OLDHAM: 
  GREAT 
  EARTHQUAKE 
  OF 
  1897. 
  

  

  3. 
  The 
  fissures 
  running 
  parallel 
  to 
  rivers 
  and 
  tanks, 
  along 
  their 
  sides, 
  have 
  

   more 
  rarely 
  been 
  accompanied 
  by 
  outpourings 
  of 
  sand 
  and 
  water. 
  They 
  appear 
  

   to 
  be 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  weakness 
  of 
  the 
  unsupported 
  banks. 
  Owing 
  to 
  them 
  and 
  other 
  

   causes, 
  nearly 
  all 
  river 
  channels 
  in 
  the 
  pali 
  tract 
  have 
  narrowed, 
  some 
  to 
  the 
  

   extent 
  of 
  10 
  to 
  20 
  per 
  cent, 
  of 
  their 
  width. 
  In 
  many 
  instances 
  this 
  narrowing 
  

   process 
  has 
  crumpled 
  up 
  the 
  bridges, 
  or 
  otherwise 
  seriously 
  damaged 
  them. 
  

   Moreover, 
  the 
  rivers, 
  tanks 
  and 
  wells 
  in 
  the 
  pali 
  tract 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  have 
  been 
  

   filledjwith 
  sand.^ 
  Both 
  large 
  and 
  small 
  rivers 
  suffered 
  thus, 
  and 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  

   small 
  drains 
  have 
  been^entirely 
  silted 
  up. 
  Small 
  streams, 
  100 
  to 
  150 
  feet 
  in 
  width 
  

   have 
  been 
  rilled 
  up 
  50 
  to 
  75 
  per 
  cent, 
  of 
  their 
  depth. 
  In 
  large 
  rivers 
  the 
  filling 
  up 
  

   of 
  channels 
  or 
  at 
  least 
  the 
  main 
  channel 
  is 
  not 
  more 
  than 
  15 
  to 
  20 
  per 
  cent, 
  of 
  the 
  

   depth. 
  The 
  branch 
  channels, 
  however, 
  in 
  some 
  cases 
  have 
  been 
  considerably 
  

   filled 
  up. 
  The 
  principal 
  drainage 
  channels 
  of 
  the 
  district 
  that 
  have 
  suffered 
  most 
  

   injury 
  are 
  the 
  two 
  channels 
  at 
  Rangpur, 
  the 
  river 
  Ghagat, 
  into 
  which 
  they 
  fall 
  and 
  

   on 
  the 
  banks 
  of 
  which 
  the 
  Civil 
  Station 
  of 
  Gaibanda 
  stands, 
  the 
  Buri 
  Tista 
  nadi 
  

   passing 
  by 
  the 
  important 
  town 
  of 
  Ulipur, 
  the 
  Bamni 
  nadi 
  between 
  Ulipur 
  and 
  

   Kurigram, 
  the 
  Jerai 
  nadi, 
  the 
  Kotakhali, 
  the 
  Manash, 
  the 
  Hathalia, 
  the 
  Hatia, 
  

   the 
  Maroghagat, 
  west 
  of 
  Gaibanda, 
  the 
  Naleya 
  nadi, 
  the 
  Tista 
  and 
  the 
  Mara 
  

   Akira. 
  Several 
  places 
  in 
  these 
  rivers 
  which 
  were 
  not 
  fordable 
  before 
  the 
  earth- 
  

   quake, 
  but 
  could 
  be 
  crossed 
  only 
  by 
  ferry, 
  became 
  fordable 
  through 
  the 
  earth- 
  

   quake. 
  The 
  bed 
  of 
  the 
  Ghagat 
  referred 
  to 
  above, 
  which 
  passes 
  through 
  the 
  

   heart 
  of 
  the 
  Gaibanda 
  subdivisional 
  headquarters, 
  rose 
  about 
  10 
  to 
  15 
  feet 
  from 
  

   Naldanga 
  in 
  the 
  north 
  to 
  Badiakhali 
  in 
  the 
  south, 
  a 
  distance 
  of 
  nearly 
  22 
  miles 
  ; 
  

   the 
  consequence 
  of 
  this 
  has 
  been 
  that 
  while 
  the 
  river 
  is 
  fordable, 
  the 
  ordinary 
  

   drainage 
  has 
  passed 
  over 
  the 
  country, 
  and 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  the 
  villages 
  on 
  either 
  

   bank 
  have 
  been 
  under 
  water 
  since 
  the 
  earthquake. 
  

  

  4. 
  Of 
  the 
  3,000 
  square 
  miles 
  of 
  pali 
  land 
  in 
  the 
  district, 
  the 
  tracts 
  that 
  have 
  

   suffered 
  most 
  are 
  about 
  Rangpur 
  and 
  in 
  eastern 
  and 
  south-eastern 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  

   district, 
  where 
  about 
  20 
  per 
  cent, 
  of 
  the 
  area 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  be 
  covered 
  with 
  sand. 
  In 
  

   the 
  north-western 
  and 
  western 
  tracts 
  there 
  have 
  been 
  fissures 
  and 
  outpourings 
  

   of 
  sand 
  and 
  water 
  nearly 
  everywhere, 
  but 
  not 
  on 
  such 
  an 
  extensive 
  scale 
  as 
  in 
  

   the 
  eastern 
  and 
  south-eastern 
  parts. 
  The 
  outpourings 
  of 
  sand 
  have 
  been 
  greatest 
  

   in 
  the 
  jurisdictions 
  of 
  thanas 
  Sunderganj, 
  eastern 
  part 
  of 
  Gaibanda, 
  parts 
  of 
  

   thanas 
  Ulipur, 
  Nageswari, 
  Mahiganj 
  and 
  Katwali 
  (Sadar). 
  

  

  Letter 
  Ho. 
  1288 
  J., 
  dated 
  Dinajpur, 
  the 
  20th 
  October 
  1897, 
  from 
  N. 
  Bonham- 
  

   Carter, 
  Esq., 
  Magistrate 
  of 
  Dinajpur, 
  to 
  the 
  Commissioner 
  of 
  the 
  Rajshahi 
  

   Division. 
  

  

  In 
  reply 
  to 
  your 
  memorandum 
  No. 
  706 
  Mel., 
  dated 
  23rd 
  August 
  last, 
  for- 
  

   warding 
  a 
  copy 
  of 
  Government 
  Order 
  No. 
  4621 
  J., 
  dated 
  14th 
  idem, 
  requiring 
  

   certain 
  information 
  on 
  the 
  subject 
  of 
  fissures 
  in 
  the 
  ground 
  caused 
  by 
  the 
  earth- 
  

   quake 
  of 
  1 
  2th 
  June, 
  I 
  have 
  the 
  honour 
  to 
  say 
  that 
  fissures 
  of 
  a 
  minor 
  nature 
  

   occurred; 
  throughout 
  the 
  district. 
  They 
  occurred 
  usually 
  along 
  the 
  edges 
  of 
  

   rivers 
  or 
  of 
  low-lying 
  land, 
  and 
  the 
  largest 
  that 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  were 
  not 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  

   foot, 
  or 
  perhaps 
  a 
  foot 
  and-a-half, 
  wide. 
  Some 
  are 
  reported 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  a 
  

   mile 
  long, 
  but 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  none 
  as 
  long 
  as 
  that, 
  though 
  some 
  are 
  of 
  considerable 
  

  

  (^3 
  20 
  ) 
  

  

  