Horrors of Earthquake In Japan, Described by Local Visitors to the Orient
Missing the Japanese earthquake by four days, landing in China in time to get in on an election, which is synonymous with a revolution, witnessing the harrowing scenes in devastated Yokohoma, looking into the crater of Kilauea, Hawaii, passing through a couple of days' storm on the Pacific, to be shaken up in a wreck on the Chicago Great Western railway in Iowa-although coming through without a scratch-have convinced C. C. Winters that a comfortable home in Kansas is more to be desired than much travel. Womanlike, however, Mrs. Winters is willing to go again when the occasion arises.
Gradually Mr. and Mrs. Winters are gathering together fragmentary remembrances of their eventful trip, from which they returned a few days ago. Leaving Arkansas City on Jul 6, they spent nearly four months in sightseeing, and it is probable that future events will be dated from "the year of the Japanese earthquake" for them, so filled was the time with circumstances which would tend to impress themselves upon memory. They sailed from Los Angeles on July 16 for Honolulu in company with Mr. and Mrs. W. D. Reynolds and daughter of Bartlesville, Oklahoma. The latter were bent on a pleasure visit to Mrs. Reynolds' brother, Lieutenant Hunt, then in Hawaiian service but within the last few days returned to the United States. He is now visiting with his people here, having completed his foreign service. From here he will go to Georgia. From Mrs. Winters the following interesting story was obtained:
Learned of Quake by Wireless
The Winters-Reynolds party, after spending a delightful few weeks in Hawaii during which time among other "stunts" favored by visitors they visited the crater of the volcano Kilauca, later sailed for Japan. When four days out of Yokohama their ship, the Taiyo Maru, a Japanese floating palace, was advised by wireless of the earthquake. Immediately the wireless of the vessel was taken over by the Japanese government. No private messages were accepted, and the report went out that the Taiyo Maru was in distress, as it failed to answer signals. Soon it was reported the ship was sending out S O S calls. Relatives of passengers, knowing of the earthquake and solicitous as to the welfare of those aboard the ship, were in great distress. Meantime the boat's wireless was being used by the government as a relay station between the stricken district and other parts of Japan.
Arriving in the port of Yokohama, the ship anchored in the harbor, about three quarters of a mile from shore. The extent of the devastation was apparent to passengers, although none landed except eight men who secured a small boat and made their way ashore. It was then four days after the quake, and an occasional corpse would be seen floating on the water of the bay. The city was completely destroyed, only a few buildings being left standing and these being burned to shells. A number of American destroyers were in the harbor when they arrived, the crews of these busily engaged in relief work and in disposing of the dead. Already the odors had become almost unbearable. The American destroyers were the first relief craft to arrive, a number having made record speed from Chinese ports. It was several days before the Japanese appreciated the charitable nature of the Americans' mission. They were suspicious that the Americans had come to conquer Japan.
Harrowing Scenes in Yokohama
The sight who ventured on shore from the Taiyo Maru brought back to the ship the most extraordinary tales of the disaster. They reported that in one square, a city park where thirty thousand had taken refuge from the quake and fire, the entire number were wiped out by the pursuing flames and a tidal wave which engulfed the park. They reported that of the Americans and English housed in the Grand hotel, where these nationals predominated, only five survived. So narrow were the streets of Yokohama, in some cases not more than fourteen feet wide, that surging humanity quickly choked them and the death loss from fire was tremendous. Since the quake no permanent building is permitted in Yokohama until a new city can be laid out with wider streets.
At Yokohama, where the ship remained four days, three thousand refugees were taken aboard. The steerage and second cabin were filled first, then the deck chairs were given over to the refugees, and the regular passengers were compelled to stay below or stand if they went on deck. Throughout the time of distress the Japanese ship management gave the passengers and refugees the best of care. Everything was amply provided except water, which became scarce and baths were denied.
Chinese Praise America
The Chinese papers had great praise for the Americans' quick response to the demand for help, and had considerable to say in criticism of the Japanese for their suspicious attitude.
An interesting incident was reported to the passengers of the Taiyo Maru. The Empress of Australia, a Canadian steamship, was just at the point of leaving the dock at its accustomed time of 12 o'clock noon. At two minutes to 12 the quake took place. All time pieces stopped at that minute. The pier, on which were hundreds of people waving their last good-byes to those on ship board, dropped into the harbor. The Empress of Australia rescued five thousand of these unfortunates, and remained in the port two days.
Visit Ancient Jap Capital
From Yokohama the Taiyo Maru sailed through the Inland Sea, with its resplendent scenery, stopping next at Kobe, one of the important silk ports of Japan. It was the end of the voyage for the ship, which remained only long enough to take on provisions, hospital supplies and water. Four of the passengers remained aboard and returned to Yokohama. At Kobe, which had more the aspect of a European city and where there is a beautiful hotel, all accommodations had been exhausted by the influx of European refugees from Yokohama and Tokio, and the Winters party was compelled to go to Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan two hours inland. The change was welcome, since Kyoto is not so frequently visited by outsiders and retains its appearance of Japanese antiquity. Here they found an excellent hotel of old, rambling architecture in beautiful settings, everything characteristically Japanese. They remained in Kyoto a week. Another element in the good fortune that pursued them was that they missed a tidal wave which swept Kobe the day after they arrived, driving all the ships in the harbor out to sea.
Miss Chinese Revolution
From Kobe they sailed for Shanghai, China, the only Chinese city they visited. They wanted to go to Peking, but were advised that it was unsafe, because and election was in progress and revolution always threatens when an important election is on in China. Chinese elections and revolutions, however, are not always the bloody affairs they are in other countries. The Chinese look at things from a practical standpoint. In the election, instead of gumshoeing around to buy votes that everyone knows are bought, the Chinese provide agencies where votes may be bought and sold in an open, honest way, and naturally the man who can spend the most money gets the election-somewhat after the manner of some of our beauty contests. When a revolution is on, mealtime is never interferred with-and probably if someone suggested a world's series on Mah Jong in the midst of the fighting, firing would ceased by mutual agreement, to be resumed when convenient. We used to hear of some such mode of fighting in the World war until the Americans took a hand and taught the systematic fighters of Europe that a fight is a fight until it is finished. In Shanghai the Winters party enjoyed themselves during their two weeks' stay, taking in the scenery in rickshaws, which are more popular, less speedy and considerably lower in price as means of conveyances than the taxicabs, which are expensive luxuries. China however, has more taxicabe and more automobiles than has Japan. It appears there are either more rich people or more progressive people in China than in Japan. But while the taxicab serves as a convenience, especially to the foreign people of Shanghai, the rickshaw continues the popular means of rapid thansit. Another feature of the rickshaw that appeals to the tourist is that many of the rickshaw boys speak English and are of great assistance in shopping tours.
Coaling By Human Labor
At Shanghai they embarked on the Empress of Russia for the return trip, which was less eventful than that going. They stopped at Nagasaki, "tough-looking" little coaling port, to replenish the coal supply. Coal and loading both are cheap at Nagasaki. About fifty barges, filled three times, were drawn alongside the ship, with about twenty men and women on each. Coal was passed to the ship in small reed baskets and in the remarkably short time, considering the method, of two and a half hours the ship was coaled.
Returning to Yokohama, the party had only three hours in the port there, and not sufficient time to go Tokio. They went ashore and viewed the ruins-and it was ruins and then more ruins. The dead had by that time been disposed of. Inhabitants were scarce, however, and the few they saw were living in shanties scrapped up from the ruins, until the new city is laid out. Small, pathetic-looking crosses had been placed upon lots to mark ownership. The one spot which had been entirely cleared was that which had been occupied by the British consulate. Here eight crosses had been set up under the English flag to mark the spot where eight British subjects had lost their lives . It was as though the flag and crosses said, "We-the British Empire with its millions of subjects on which the sun never sets-could not stand before the terrible forces of nature, but we can clean away the rubbish they left."
Glory on the Job
One square they saw entirely filled with American army tents, over which floated Old Glory-compassionate America, first to relieve the distress of the stricken; not so particular about cleaning off the spot where fell its citizens, but first to think of all men as brothers.
Countless incidents were related of broken families, of loved ones lost. A passenger on the ship home was an Englishman, a Yokohama banker. He and a ten-months-old babe were all that remained of his family. His wife and five-year-old daughter had driven down in the automobile to the bank with the chauffeur and were waiting in the car on the street when the crash came. The bank building toppled over upon them. The infant had been left in the country with a nurse and was saved, and the banker himself escaped injury. On the ship going over was a California woman whose husand had sold out his business and shipped his stock to Yokohama, where they intended to locate. When the Taiyo Maru anchored in Yokohama harbor officers came aboard. The woman asked if by any chance they knew Mr. -. One of the officers said he had become quite well acquainted with him, and that they had been together the night before the quake, but he had not seen him since. Later his death was verified.
Finale A Wreck
The Party returned by the northern route, passing through a couple of days of storm, and colder weather, to land at Vancouver. From there home the journey became more prosaic. Except for points of interest in Voncouver and Victoria, and a day passing Banff and Lake Louise, the Canadian part of the journey was uninteresting. After leaving Minnesota for Kansas City the wreck occurred, in which the double-header engine pulling their train, together with the coaches up to within two cars of their Pullman, were derailed.. Though thrown from their berths into the aisle, in a scrambled state, none of the party was injured.