The Doctor suggested that they would walk to the cathedral and see the extent of the ruin, and so the trio proceeded there. Every few steps they met dozens of people rushing wildly about in spite of the efforts of others to calm them. As they neared the cathedral the crowd became more and more dense, but happily less excited; it was a matter of some difficulty to get near the ruins, but by patience and perseverance Doctor Bronson and the youths worked their way to the front of the assemblage, and close up to the heap of brick and stone. A part of the front had fallen, and with it one of the sides; but the rest of the walls remained standing, though there were great seams here and there that showed the work was seriously weakened, and would need to be torn down if it did not fall. The roof was crushed, owing to the loss of support on one side, and the rafters and the covering boards lay in a confused mass on the floor. It began to grow dark, as the earthquake occurred a little before sunset, and our friends deemed it best to return to the hotel. They reached it in safety, and found it had not suffered greatly by the shaking it had received; like many of the houses of Manilla it was only one story in height, and the roof was lightly constructed, partly because the climate did not require a heavy one, and partly with a view to avoiding injury in the frequent disturbances to which Luzon is subject. The walls were cracked in a few places, and some of the tiles had been dislodged; but the proprietor thought that for twenty dollars he could repair all the damages. Very naturally the conversation during the evening was devoted to earthquakes, and the boys accumulated a considerable stock of information on the subject. Fred turned to Mr. Jagor's book on the Philippines, and found that a great many earthquakes had been recorded in Manilla, the most fatal occurring in the years 1601, 1610, 1645, 1658, 1675, 1796, 1824, 1852, and 1863.[2] On the third of June, 1863, at thirty-one minutes past seven in the evening, after a day of tremendous heat, and while all Manilla was busy with preparations for a religious festival, the ground suddenly rocked to and fro with great violence; the firmest buildings reeled visibly, walls crumbled, and beams snapped in two. The shock lasted half a minute; but this little interval of time was enough to change the whole city into a mass of ruins, and to bury alive hundreds of its inhabitants. The cathedral, the barracks, the governor's residence, and all the public buildings were entirely destroyed; 400 persons were killed, 2000 were wounded, and the loss in money was estimated at $8,000,000. Forty-six public and 570 private buildings were thrown down, and all the houses that remained standing were more or less injured. [2] A severe earthquake occurred at Manilla in the latter part of 1880, throwing down the cathedral and other buildings, but the full details are not at hand.--_Author._