“Describing Japanese earthquake 1 Sep 1923 by Maurice Bruce. He afterwards got on to the Empress of Australia docked nearby” Notation by Frank Bruce. The Empress of Australia took euro-american survivors to Kobe where it appears they were distributed among available ships for repatriation to North America and Europe. Maurice likely connected with his Aunt Gertrude (Bruce) Cranch through a Kobe-based marshaling and registration process, then sailed with her on board the SS President Jefferson to Victoria, BC, Canada. Their probable journey from there would be to Vancouver, then to Montreal or Halifax by train and finally by ship to England. Why the letter ends mid-sentence we’ll never know.
The Admiral Line
Pacific Steamship Company
On board SS President Jefferson
Enroute to Seattle
September 11, 1923
Darling Mum,
I know quite well you have heard of the terrible earthquake, fire and typhoon which have wiped out Yokohama and almost all of Tokyo.
I heard that Dad and Frank walked back from Tokyo after the earthquake and joined Vi in reaching Yoko; a young chap recently out from London and who was staying with us looked after Vi, and as far as I can tell be all four together, safe and sound.
I happened to be on the pier at the time seeing somebody off on the “Australia” and just as they were hauling up the gangway this thing started. I stood calm while everybody lost their heads, screaming, fainting and running in all directions. I soon was unable to stand up and when I found the pier going in I beat it for the opposite side and in crossing over, the whole place went in and I was thrown down of course. I hurt my arm and shoulder a little but not seriously and under such circumstances one does not notice such trifles anyway. I got to the side of this place which had not fallen in and was on the point of swimming to the land when somebody I knew came running up and, I tell you, we were glad to see each other and immediately decided to board the French mail boat which happened to be in at the time.
As soon as the strongest jerk was over which brought down all the buildings a terribly thick cloud of dust came over from the land which filled our eyes and throats. Then the typhoon and fire started creating the most terrible sight of the lot, a sight I am totally at a loss to describe. The whole place — the Bluff [neighbourhood of Yokohama situated on a rise where the Bruce’s and other expats lived], the wharfs and settlement [where foreigners lived] was on fire with a terrible wind which threatened to blow us clean off the pier altogether. Explosions were to be heard all round and the lighters, barges, launches all were flaming and being blown on to us gradually. Well, we had a terrible time on that ship and the storm not abating until the evening at which time there was an extremely anxious [end of letter]