“‘Bosse, alle same, catchee match?’
“My escort gave him the desired article, and
the Chinaman made a fire of his pile of twigs.
‘Why are you making a fire, John?’ I asked.
“‘Bleakfast,’ he replied laconically.
“I asked him where his food might be, and he
gave us a quick glance of suspicion as he said briefly,
‘No sabbe.’
“We stood watching him, evidently to his great
distress, and finally he made bold to say, ’You
no stand lound, bosse. You go ‘way.’
“We left him, but after making the tour around
the lake came back to the same place. There sat
four people on the ground eating fried pork, potatoes
and Chinese cakes. In a young woman of the group
I recognized one whom I had seen dancing at one of
Mr. Greenway’s Friday Night Cotillion balls
in the Palace Hotel’s maple room during the winter.
They offered to share their meal with us, but we told
them that we had just come from breakfast in Oakland.
I told them about the strange conduct of their Chinaman,
who was traveling back and forth from his fire to the
‘table’ with the food as it became ready
to serve.
“The father of the family laughed.”
“‘Yes,’ he said, ’that is
Charlie’s way. He has been with us many
years, and when our home was destroyed he came out
here with us in preference to seeking refuge among
his countrymen in Chinatown. Yesterday we were
without food, and Charlie disappeared. I thought
he had deserted us, but toward dark he came back with
a bamboo pole over his shoulder and a Chinese market
gardener’s basket suspended from either end.
In one of the baskets he had a pile of blankets and
a lot of canvas. In the other was an assortment
of pork, flour, Chinese cakes and vegetables, besides
a half-dozen chickens and a couple of bagfuls of rice.’
“’Charlie had been foraging in Chinatown
for us before the fire reached that quarter.
He made a tent and improvised beds for us, and he has
the food concealed somewhere in the vicinity, but
where he will not tell us, for fear that we will give
some of it to others and reduce our own supply.
Charlie boils rice for himself. He will not touch
the other food. Without him we should have been
starving.’”
G. A. Raymond, who was in the Palace Hotel when the
earthquake occurred, says:
“I had $600 in gold under my pillow. I
awoke as I was thrown out of bed. Attempting
to walk, the floor shook so that I fell. I grabbed
my clothing and rushed down into the office, where
dozens were already congregated. Suddenly the
lights went out, and every one rushed for the door.
“Outside I witnessed a sight I never want to
see again. It was dawn and light. I looked
up. The air was filled with falling stones.
People around me were crushed to death on all sides.
All around the huge buildings were shaking and waving.
Every moment there were reports like 100 cannon going
off at one time. Then streams of fire would shoot
out, and other reports followed.
