Charles Eugene Banks (1852–1932)

I did not finish this book, and the first sentence from the first chapter may give you an idea why.

"Restless as the sea his forefathers sailed to reach the new world; active as the soil that answered to the tickling of their hoes with bursts of golden laughter; fearless as the native chiefs who fought European encroachment on their domains with a savage valor worthy of the ancient Greeks; patient as the mothers who reared children in a wilderness where danger and death lurked on every hand, and with a soul as broadly sympathetic as the missionaries who led the way for the pioneer into the new world, Theodore Roosevelt, the twenty-sixth President of the United States, stands to-day the embodiment of Americanism."

Nope, I can't endure a whole 413 pages of that. The forward by General Joseph Wheeler was fine reading, the poem at the front was bearable. The rest of the book must have been written by a publicity agent, or someone who wanted to by one. I like what I know of Theodore Roosevelt, but this book's style was unreadable for me.… (més)

Title page:
The Complete History of the San Francisco Disaster & Mount Vesuvius Horror.
Death and Ruin by Eruption, Earthquake and Fire.

A Complete and Authentic Account of the Terrible Calamity that Befell the City of the Golden Gate, Stricken by Earthquake and Devastated by Fire. Described and Penned by Eye-Witnesses and those who Worked to Relieve the Suffering.

A Vivid Account of the Eruption of Mount Vesuvius and other great Historical Catastrophes which have Destroyed Thousands of Lives and Laid Whole Countries in ruin.

Illustrated with Photographic Scenes
of the Great Disasters and Stricken Districts

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Apparently the 1906 San Francisco quake and the subsequent firestorms didn't provide quite enough drama without the addition of Pompeii. Several of these contemporaneous publications go on to discuss Mount Vesuvius and other volcanoes.… (més)