A HARROWING PICTURE

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Mar 31, 1898

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 24, No. 13.

A HARROWING PICTURE.

From a trusted correspondent in Australia, Mr. W. H. B. Miller, comes the following harrowing report of matters in the Southern Continent:—

“Altho the year is but six weeks old, 1898 will ever be remembered as one of the most disastrous periods in Australia’s history. Crime and disease are rampant, the percentages being far higher than preceding records. Altho charitable institutions for the sick are numerous, they report their utter inability to accommodate all the fever cases desiring admission. This serious condition of affairs has been aggravated by the intense heat, which has been more distressing than for any period within the last sixteen years. The thermometer has registered 112 to 114 degrees in the shade in some localities, and 160 to 170 degrees in the sun. Deaths from sunstroke and heat-apoplexy have been enormous; even many native birds and animals have succumbed.

“But worst of all is the terrible bush-fire visitation, which is in very truth a national calamity. Hundreds of square miles of valuable pasture and timber have been destroyed. Crops, orchards, stacks, barns, and homesteads have been swept out of existence. Hundreds have been rendered homeless and penniless by the terrible devastation. Many barely escaped with their lives, some only partially clad, with hair and beards singed, wounded, totally blind, exhausted, and demented. Even villages were attacked, and in some instances partially destroyed. One town was totally annihilated. Thousands of cattle have been killed, and in some places the devastated paddocks are strewn with roasted carcasses. I can not convey to you any idea of the terrors of the past month. Men, women, and even children have fought for their homes till they have fallen down exhausted. Some wonderful escapes have been recorded and many courageous acts performed. From some localities we hear that lives have been lost, and many are missing. The monetary loss can not be estimated.

“The drought still continues, and while I am writing the city of Melbourne is shrouded with a pall of smoke, and the fires are still raging throughout the country. Vessels are unable to approach Hobson’s Bay because of the dense smoke, which has traveled hundreds of miles. Relief depots have been opened throughout the country, to which clothing and provisions are being forwarded. The government has provided special trains and tents when necessary. The public subscription list in Melbourne now totals over £7,000 ($35,000.).”

These conditions forebode the still greater calamities to come, foretold in the Word of God.