Show W in cre n t e r 00 11 4 R n I 1 california MA M k e 1 all escape without serious injury WRECKING DEM HING 7 N vv eyne t 0 o ill 5 AN W illy ra flu southern california quickly recovered from its it shock of earthquakes to start the work of recon strow tion upper left twisted wreckage of a bakery in long beach upper right damaged first Method methodist las episcopal church in the same city lower left steeple of st anthonys church being pulled down ill by firemen i remen lower right steam shovel crew begins to clear away shapeless wreckage of th the S s rill ding in compton associated press brer is photos an interesting eyewitness account ot of the earthquake in california march has been received in a communication from C 1 I johnson of roosevelt who la Is spending the tha winter in long beach and who was in the very heart of the devastated area at the time of the quake in ills his communication lie he states that he and ada were just sitting down to their dinner when ada served the potatoes and creamed tuna right in his lap somewhat surprised he looked at her but when the walls started to do a hula hula bula he arrived at the conclusion c that there was just cause for tier her eccentricity As a fuller understanding of the situation dawned upon clair lie ho remembered adas oft expressed wisia to experience expert nee an earth quake and realizing that the desie was in the process of being bet rig fulfilled there was born a desire of his own namely to absent himself from the premises but he be found that his sudden inspiration was not by any means confined to himself alone thousands of long beach people were imbued with the same desire when he reached the street he was greeted with the sight of a panic stricken populace rushing from dwellings which were crashing to earth behind them the ground was heaving beneath his feet the grocery store on the corner crumpled like a cardboard box and from the hospital across the way the patients were streaming into the 0 pen open clad only in the scanty attire of the sick room lamar johnson was in an upstairs bedroom at the time and called down to inquire the reason tor for the shaking up uj he received Tec elved deadmon doa rmon and laraine were away from home dearmon had just left the Y M C A and laraine had just finished a lesson at a dancing studio both places were demolished in the shakeup sha keup after the quake which lasted tor for nearly a minute the johneson Johns cin family walked to the home of mrs pearl christensen also a former resident of roosevelt and a sister of clair here they found the christensen Chrls home badly damaged but none of the family injured les leg mullins mulling also of roosevelt was in his place of business at the time and because of fall falling rig brick was unable to leave by either the front or rear entrance he finally crawled under a sedan for protection front from the falling debris and escaped without injury the building was completely wrecked lyle reynolds and bud mullins business building were slightly damaged but all escaped without injury returning aning to their home they found the gas had been turned off because of the fire hazard but fortunately the electric lights were still functioning then followed a night of horror borror sleep was ont of the question the tremors continued all that night and tar far into the next day when at p m clyde ricci rich formerly of vernal and now a member of the alhambra california police department drove through the guard lines and took them out of the danger zone on the way out of long beach they passed a steady stream of refugees who were leaving the district through tear fear of a tidal wave the sailors had landed from the pa pacific C if I 1 c fleet and the sight of uniformed nien men patrolling the streets with fixed bayonets bayo tire the demolished demolished buildings and the red cross tents were reminiscent of world war days in the interim between the major shock and the time of their leaving there was a total of one hundred thirty one quakes and the tremors continued to lengthened intervals for several days afterwards in closing clair calls attention to the fact that the affected area has a population of over two million people and that the loss of life was trifling when compared to other catastrophes of a similar nature the spirit of its hardy inhabitants has asserted itself in a program of reconstruction which bids fair to rebuild the city of 0 long beach more beautiful than ever perhaps the moral lesson that man is not omnipotent as expressed in the following lines which were composed amid the scenes of devastation will offset any material loss sustained rhe jhc night winds moan the moon hangs high the good earth tosses like the angry sea and in this hour fraught with woe there steals a sense of lifes fu futility tilty |