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The California Earthquake of April 18, 1906

Abstract

ON the average a little earthquake occurs in the world every fifteen minutes. Great earthquakes occur on the average about every four days, but it is only on rare occasions that they hit populated districts. The majority of the latter originate beneath deep oceans or in uninhabited mountain regions, and as neither little fish nor wandering tribes write letters to the Times, all we know about their occurrence comes from the observations of enthusiastic seismologists. Nineteen hundred and six, however, was a bad year for humanity, and exhibitions of seismic relief took place in many districts. On January 31 a great disaster occurred in Colombia. On April 4 many soldiers and natives lost their lives in the Kangra Valley. On April 14 nearly 6000 houses fell in Formosa, whilst four days later San Francisco and other towns in Central California were reduced to ruins. On June 14, Kingston, in Jamaica, was badly shattered, and in the autumn, on August 17, Valparaiso and Santiago fell. In connection with the disaster at San Francisco, British shareholders in insurance companies were called upon for twelve million pounds, whilst towards the reconstruction in Kingston their contribution was two millions. What they paid for the happenings in other parts of the world I do not know, but it is quite certain that attention was directed to the fact that even the inhabitants of the British islands were not entirely beyond the pale of the vagaries of Mater Terra.

The California Earthquake of April 18, 1906.

Report of the State Earthquake Investigation Committee (in two vols. and atlas). Vol. ii., The Mechanics of the Earthquake. By Harry F. Reid. Pp. viii + 192. (Washington: Carnegie Institution, 1910.)

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MILNE, J. The California Earthquake of April 18, 1906. Nature 84, 165–166 (1910). https://doi.org/10.1038/084165a0

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