To the Editor of the "Norra-Cama Darty News."
Srr,—During last week-end when we had warning of a typhoon approaching Shanghai I was struck by the absolute callousness or ignorance displayed by some ship masters towards the probable danger. Large steamers were to be seen lying at the buoys with only a couple of wires out, no further effort being made to secure their safety. Others lay at the wharves with barely sufficient moorings to hold them against an ordinary stiff breeze.
There seems no doubt that if a typhoon centre ever passes over Shanghai there will be a worse catastrophe than the one at Swatow. For the average person it is impossible to imagine the awfulness of a cyclone's centre, but 'o anyone that has had the luck to survive the passage through one the very thought of one being in the vicinity is sufficient to cause grave anxiety.
I wonder that the harbour officials did not realize the danger and take action by compelling the ship masters to make their vessels more secure. A good example of the velocity that the wind may attain can be taken from the following.
Some years ago a cyclone passed over Cossack in Western Australia, when a small steamer was deposited bodily on top of a granite and concrete wharf, knocking over a %-ton stationary crane in the process. Practically the whole of the settlement was wiped out and hundreds of cattle and horses were blown into the water and drowned. The water rose over 20 feet above the highest spring tide level so that what was low-lying land, ordinarily, became large bays with tremendous seas rolling across. Rain fell to the extent of several inches causing freshets to rush down, sweeping everything before them. These meeting the sea water being driven inland caused terrible confusion, wrecking everything that was in the way. The wind was so fierce that pebbles and shells from the shore were driven with such force that they were found embedded in the hardwood trees and posts as though they had been fired from a gun at close range.
Hundreds of fish and turtle were found some miles inland where they had been deposited by the abnormal rise of water.
Try and picture Shanghai if such a storm should ever strike it squarely. It makes one shudder to think of the consequences especially after the display of downright ignorance that we had last week on the part of those who should know better.
It is about time the authorities woke up to a realization of their responsibilities and framed and enforced some regulations to meet such a case. When one reads of the ships in Swatow parting their cables the way they did, it seems criminal for vessels to be allowed to lie here with only a couple of wires out. It will be too late to do anything when the danger is on us as it is impossible for a person to stand, much less work during the height of one of these storms. It is better to take precautions a dozen times than to be caught unprepared once.
I know it is almost a hopeless matter to and break the "maskee" spirit which makes people believe that because Shanghai has not been wrecked before it never will be.
A storm centre may pass just a few miles away and not do any damage, but the place where the centre passes is invariably wrecked.
I am, ete., Steam ann Satz.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.