Letters in Earthquakes　

　　At 8pm on December 6, 1920, an earthquake took place in Haiyuan District. The epicenter was in LiuPan Mountain area on the borders of Gansu and Ningxia. The epicenter magnitude was 12. Haiyuan and Xiji counties were damaged most seriously. Gansu, Ningxia, Shaanxi and even Qinghai, Hennan, and part of Shanxi also suffered from the earthquake. When the earthquake took place, the lights swayed in Beijing. Even the people far away in Shanghai could feel it. Such a wide spread earthquake was not only rarely seen in China but also in the whole world in terms of its intensity and its wide range.

A letter to his mother by Fan Gongren (February 1, 1921)

　

A letter to his mother by Lin Cai  (December 25, 1920)

This earthquake caused “the villages in East LiuPan Mountain area to be buried. The ground surface became high hills and deep valleys. The mountain exploded and the ground was split. Dark water flooded anywhere. The four cities including Haiyuan and Guyuan were completely destroyed. More than 70,000 peopled died in the earthquake in Haiyuan only. The total casualty was no less than 200,000.” “ Walls and buildings of Guyuan were collapsed, the bulk head was ruined. The rural areas were hit more severely. Two villages the northwest were leveled completely. 30,000 people were killed and 60,000 domestic animals were buried in soil.”

　　It was extremely cold that day when the earthquake happened. Because the residents stayed indoors, many people died in the earthquake. After the earthquake, the North Warlords didn't take any measures and they simply let things go from bad to worse. Some people were suffocated to death. Some died of the pains in serious wounds or were even tore up by wolves. Many people died of hunger or coldness. The spread of the diseases in the next years also resulted in numerous death.

　　Notes to rebuild the two music-building tablets

Notes to rebuild  the two music-building tablets

　　In the winter of the third year of Gengshen (title of an ancient emperor), an earthquake took place. These buildings were destroyed at that time and we loyal subjects have even no places to worship the deities.

　Composed and inscribed by Li Shanqing in the 12th year of the Republic of China