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.
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