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Part of San Francisco Earthquake, 1906

extracted text

(Tdited from carton copy of a letter)
U.P .Private far.
Oakland Pier, cal:
April 26, 1906



Deer N 2 5
thie mst be a petchy lotter, made in moments ©
grebhed betwen times; for things ere turging! But
you will want to know.

Mre Yo ond I roached Oakland after 5 pelle
Monday, vis Stockton and Traey. So fer es I could »-
s99 from the train, thore was little eviderce of
the earthquake in the neightoring pisces, execpt
ing an oeeasional chimney neatly distrituted over z
a roof and tre neigntor's yard. In Rerkeley these = —
indicetions heesme more pronounced — pérches de~
tached from houses, briek fronts felien or loaning,
ond almost every chimney destroyed - end the condi~
tions were worse in Caklend. + « « « Southorn Pt
cific officen have heen temporarily located in
various tuildings in the neighborhood of 18th and
Telegraph Streets, soe of the departments in
available portions of an 11-story steel offices
Yullding, others in a new 5-story apertaent Nouses
ard still others in 4 4-story building with qilepie —
dated cornice am shattered windows. It is shored —
up with all the timbers tney could find room for, a
and I presume is'a seaworthy building (rededs) or
they would not use it. As yet I krow little of the
distritution to re made of those various proportion,
as fetreen the departments, The Auditor of *reight
Accounts, I believe, ia to he maroovied on the end ef
tne narrow-gauge mole, I sheli try to have all
this infornation nailed down tefore I return to
Omahae

Oekland streets are pretty badly disfigured —
piles of debris where swall tusiness wildinrs
woljapsed and have heen clasned out irom between
prety walls; cornices ripped off, chimneys denol—
‘ished, cracks meandering up the fronts of trick and
stone structures, plate glass shattered, and wells
jeening. ‘The streets are crowed; it is aeid thet
over 160,000 refugees ere in Oskiend. Soldiors
patrol the strosts end the hest of order proveline
‘he people are self-contained and hopsmMl: fow
desponient faces are soen, and super nerve seems
to he the common possession of a1], Relief ste-
tions ar9 mimerous, and it is an intervsting end
pathetic sight to observe tie crowds at these pleces.
The first businors of sverybody 18 the helping of
tie nesdy, ard it 1¢ fine to see tae govdwili and
syopethy end helpfulness woion this calemity nas
Drougit to the surface. I cai’t sey enough for
the pluek end bravery of the sufferers; they are