July, 1887.] - ELLIOTT SOCIETY. - 139 



The Commission appointed to collect information concerning 

 the Earthquake, made the following Report: 



The Commission of the Elliott Society which was requested to collect infor- 

 mation with regard to the Charleston Earthquake of August 31st, 1886, Reports 

 that it has received communications from four members of the Commission, 

 and from five persons not members of the Society, whose names will appear 

 attached to their communications. The Commission has endeavored to confine 

 itself entirely to the facts which have been observed by those stating them, 

 and these only will appear in the extracts given below. 



EespectfuUy submitted, 



L. R. GIBBES, 



Chairman. 



Hon. W. M. Thomas writes : 



\ 



" I was recruiting my health at Summerville during the earthquake of the 

 31st Aug., and its preliminary shocks. On Friday the 26th I came to the city 

 on the 9 a. m. train, and returned in the evening to Summerville. My daugh- 

 ter, Mrs. Easterby, informed me of the shock at 9. 30 a. m. of that day — that 

 it was severe and appeared to run from N.E. to S.W. or vice versa. Dr. Fludd, 

 our attending physician, said it appeared to him to come from the S. W., and 

 to be in the air, just about 20° above the horizon. 



The next morning, about 5 a. m., while in bed I felt myself suddenly lifted, 

 and as suddenly cast down, as if into my grave, by a shock which gave no pre- 

 monition. It was very severe, but I was certain it was vertical, or nearly so — 

 though it roUed off towards the S. W. apparently. 



There were other shocks on Saturday and Sunday, apparently from N. E. to 

 S. W. None that I can recall on Monday or Tuesday until 9. 50 p. m. 



I was then preparing to go to bed and had one stocking half off, while sitting 

 in my chair. I was suddenly, without premonition, bounced up, and when I 

 came down bounced up again. The lamp upon my marble top table went out, 

 the water was thrown out of the pitcher, and the furniture moved in all direc- 

 tions, but most generally from S. to N. ; the piano and bureau I noted particu- 

 larly. The next morning I found the pillars of the house leaning from N. to 

 S., with fissures in the ground, on the N. side of the pillars. 



After the first shock that night there were repeated shocks, some say twenty 

 and some forty in an hour. They were nearly incessant for the first hour. I 

 was busy trying to get things out of the house, &c. , and did not myself count 

 them. No two could agree uj)on their direction, so, about 12 o'clock, I put up 

 two pendulums, each about 5 feet long, hung from a long nail, with white- 

 washed fences at the back and lamps in front of them. What movements came 

 after that were from directions between N. E. to N. 



On Tuesday night I heard of the water springing up around us, but did not 

 see it ; but, being asked if there was danger from fire arising from openings in 



