Washington was visited by a succession of earthquake shocks early
this afternoon, which, in varying force, were felt throughout the
United States and Europe. Little damage was done, but those having
offices in tall buildings had an unpleasant experience which they
will not soon forget. A peculiar phenomenon accompanying this
seismic disturbance was the variation of the magnetic needle by over
eighty degrees from north to east and an extraordinary rise and fall
of the barometer. All wireless communication had to be abandoned,
owing to the ionizing of the atmosphere, and up to the time this
edition went to press had not been resumed. Telegrams by way of
Colon report similar disturbances in South America. In New York the
monument in Central Park known as Cleopatra's Needle was thrown from
its pedestal and broken into three pieces. The contract for its
repair and replacement has already been let. The famous monument was
a present from the Khedive of Egypt to the United States, and
formerly stood in Alexandria. The late William H. Vanderbilt
defrayed the expense of transporting it to this country.
Bill Hood read this with scant interest. The Giants had knocked the
Braves' pitcher out of the box, and an earthquake seemed a small matter.
His mind did not once revert to the mysterious message from Pax the day
before. He was thinking of something far more important.
"Say, Nellie," he demanded, tossing aside the paper impatiently, "ain't
those waffles ready yet?"