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Show TIDAL WAVE SWEEPS SOUTH SEA ISLANDS ONE THOUSAND NATIVES EN. GULFED BY TIDAL WAVE. Terrible Story of Devastation and Death Which Cornea From the So. clety Islands Surviving In. habitants Destitute of Food and Shelter. Nows of a fearful loss ot llfo In a dcstructlvo storm thpt swept over tho South Sea Islands last month has reached ban Francisco on tho steamer Mariposa, direct from Tahiti. Tho loss of llfo Is estimated at 1,000 souls. On January 13 last a huge tidal wave, accompanied ac-companied by a terrlflo hurrlcano, at-tacked at-tacked tho Society Islands and tho Punmoto group with fearful force, causing deaths and devastation never boforo equaled In a land of dreaded torms, a verification of man's Inability Inabil-ity to contend with wind and sea. Tho storm reigned soveral days, roachlng Its maximum strength be tween January 14 and January 16. From tho meager advlcos received at Tahlta up to tho tlmo of tho sailing ot tho Mariposa, It Is estimated that at least 1,000 of tho Island's Inhabitants Inhabit-ants lost their lives. It Is fcarod that later advices will add to tho long list. Tho first nows of tho disaster arrived ar-rived at Papetoo, Tahlta, January 2C, on tho schooner El moo. Tho captain ot the schoonor placed tho fatalities at BOO. The steamer Excelsior arrived nt Papette the following day with 400 destttuto survivors. Tho captain of tho Excelsior estimated tho total loss of llfo to bo 800. Theso flguros comprised only tho deaths on tho thrco Islands of Hao, Illkuera and Makokau, whoso ordinary population Is 1,800. On Hl-kuora Hl-kuora Island, whoro 1,000 Inhabitants wcro ongaged In pearl diving, nearly one-half wcro drowned. On an adjacent ad-jacent Island 100 moro wcro washed out to sea. Mp;:okau and Hao aro depopulated. de-populated. Conscrvatlvo estimates at Tahiti placo tho number of Islands Tlsltod ty tho tidal wavo and hurrlcano hurrl-cano nt 80. All of them aro undor tho control of tho Fronch governor of Tahiti. Ta-hiti. Tho surviving inhabitants nro left destltuto of food, shelter and clothing, all having boon swept tvway by the storm. Tho French government, upon receipt re-ceipt of news of tho disaster, took prompt measures to rcllcvo tho dls. tressed district nnd dispatched two warships, tho Duranoo and Zeloo, with fresh water nnd provisions. Tho Italian Ital-ian mnn-of-wnr Cnlpbrla accompanied tho two Fronch vcssols on their errand of mercy. As tho supply of fresh water nnd provisions wan totally exhausted by tho storm, It Is reared that many lives will bo lost beforo tho relief ships nrrivo. As tho islands woro barely twonty feet above sea lovel, nnd not surrounded sur-rounded by coral reefs, It was necessary neces-sary for nil tho Inhabitants to tako to tho cocanut trees whon tho tidal waves began to cover tho land. Theso trees grow to an lmmenso height, many reaching nn altltudo of 100 feet All of tho lowor troes wcro covorcd by tho raging seas, which swept with pitiless forco about and over them. Tho nn. tlvcs In tho taller trees woro safo until tho cocoanut roots gavo way, and then they, t"o, woro swept onward, tar out Into tho sea. Tho 400 survivors brought by tho Excelsior to Papeete gained tho ship's sldo by swimming ihreo and four miles from tho top3 of tho cocoanut trees. Tho Klmeo, though badly dls-ablcd dls-ablcd by tho storm, also brought off as many persons as could swim to hor sides, sho, like tho Excelsior, being un-ablo un-ablo to run closo to tho shores because of tho fearful vlolenco ot tho ocean swells, which continued to run abnormally ab-normally high for a week after the tidal disturbances. Ono of the many acts of heroism reported re-ported Is that of a woman who climbed one ot tho tall cocoanut trees and lashed her little babo to tho branches, hanging on to the body of tho treo beneath tho llttlo ono aa best she could. Thero they remained for ten hours, suffering great torture, until finally fin-ally rescued. Thousands of tons of copra and over 200 tons of mother of pearl shells aro known to bo lost 'Ino pearl shells aro valued at ?1,800 per ton, and many valuable pearls may now bo lost to tho world forover, as theso woro considered con-sidered somo of tho best pearl islands In the world. |