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Show The New Madrid Earthquake Eyery newspaper account of a severe earthquake anywhere in North America Amer-ica as registered on the delicate neis-tnographs neis-tnographs brings rather unpleasantly to mind the fact that the United States is not entirely free from these disturbances. disturb-ances. Witness the San Francisco disaster of 1906, and that at Charleston, S.C. in 1886. These earthquakes are famous because be-cause of the loss that they caused and the suffering that followed in their wake. In severity and extent of disturbance, distur-bance, however, they are not to be compared with what is known as the NewMadrid earthquake, which occurred ed principally in southeastern Missouri, northeastern Arkansas, and western Kentuckey and Tennessee during the yer following December 16, 1811. TheCharlestonandSanFraicisico disturbances distur-bances were acutely felt because they affected the congested population and the structures in two large Cities. The New Madrid earthquake left no marked impression on the history of the country because, although far more severe and prolonged it occurred in a sparsely settled and at that time unimportant unim-portant region. The destructive period of the San Francisco quake occupied only a few minutes; that in the lower Mississippi Valley persisted at intervals inter-vals for more than a year and held the few residents in a constant state of terror or apprehension. Tho history of the New Madrid earthquake earth-quake has until recently been widely scattered in the writings of many observers ob-servers who were in t r sufficiently close to the region to record the events. Several authors have published brief accounts of the occurrence. In Bulletin Bulle-tin 494 of the United States Geological Survey a very complete record of the events, abstracted from previous writing!, writ-ing!, and a discussion of the effects have been brought together by Myron L. Fuller. This bulletin is of marked interest to the reading public, but it also has a high scientific value in that it makes an important permanent addition addi-tion to the readily available earthquake records and literature. The tremors of this earthquake were felt by people in Canada, Detroit, New Orleams, Washington and Boston, the last-named place being 1,100 miles distant. Island No. 94 in Mississippi River near Vicksburg, Miss., disappeared disappear-ed completely. A large area of land near Piney River, Tenn , sank until the tree tops were on a level with the surrounding sur-rounding country and alarm was felt in the cities of Louisville and Cincinnati. It was in the region now known as the St. Francis basin, however, that the most marked effects took place. In certain parts the land surface was uplifted up-lifted and in other parts there was gi eat subsidence The latter have since been known as the "sunk land," being usually covered with water and, unless artificially drained, without agricultural agricul-tural value, even though composed of. some of the best soil of the continent. With reference to the possibilities of future disturbances Mr. Fuller cites the fact that the New Madrid earthquake earth-quake was but the latest and probably by no means the most severe of a series of similar disturbances in that ursa, ! dating back far beyond con Umporanious history, and says that recurrences are to be expected, though any prediction as to when the shocks will take place will bs futile. A copy of this report may be had on application to the Director of the i United States Geologicnl Purvey of the ; United States Geological Survey, at Washington. |