CABLE NEWS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXVII, Issue 3508, 11 April 1905, Page 3

CABLE NEWS.

Calamity in India. AN AWFUL MOMENT. HEAVY LOSS OF LIFE AND DAMAGE. Calcutta, April 8. Further details now to hand show that the consequences of the recent disastrous earthquake in Upper India are most serious. The earthquake originated in the Western Himalayas, its centre being about Dharmsala. The intensity of the shock increased through the Punjauh and United provinces, while from Rajputana northwards it decreased rapidly. Apparently, there was no wide ex tension of the disturbance towards Assam and Afghanistan. Information -from the westward is imperfect. Communication with Dharmsala is difficult, owing to the destruction of roads, bridges, and tele graphs. The Vice-regal Lodge at Simla has been declared unsafe after the earthquake. Lady Curzon, with her chil dren and staff, have removed to houses within the grounds. Many houses and Government build ings in the Kangra Valley district collapsed, especially at Parampur. Food and shelter are very urgently needed. Very serious damage was done ai Mudki, Sialkot, and elsewhere. A few houses at Lahore absolutely collapsed, and many others will need to be rebuilt.

Seven European children and 47a Gharkas, at Dharmsala were killed by tha fall ot the barracks. One fourth of the native population of the villages in the vicinity perished. A number of landslips occurred, and communication with Kashgar was cut. Many fatalities have been reported at Jelunda, Ferozepur, Amritsar, Taran, Dehra Dun, Umballa, and Srinagar. King Edward and the Prince of Wales have sent meesages expressing their profound conosrn at the calamity, and sympathy with the sufferers. The suddenness of the catastrophe at Dharmsala was appalling. In a moment the barracks were shattered from end to end. Hundreds of people were buried, and it was several hours before attempts could be made at rescue, it being impossible to remove heavy blocks of masonry. By Wed uesday afternoon two hundred were rescued. Many were terribly crushed. A Hindu survivor relates that at 6 o'clock on Tuesday morning, after a cold and boisterous night, the mountains rattled, and the whole place heaved up and then subsided. The Hindus fled from their huts, and prayed in the open, while a roar like the dis Charge of heavy guns continued. Then there was a terrible crash. The. Hindu narrator saw a great gap open and swallow two houses. Then the barracks were uplifted two feet, and collapsed in ruins, amidst terrible cries by the victims buried in the wreckage —cries which soon ceased. Many natives were killed by falling bricks and stonework. The victims in all places number 20,000.