Pacific Earthquake.

Hokitika Guardian, 9 February 1923, Page 3

Pacific Earthquake.

SPLENDID RECORDS OBTAINED. WELLINGTON, Feb 7. “Wo got a splendid record of the big earthquakes in the Pacific,” .stated Dr C. E. Adams. (Government Astronomer) when interviewed. “There were two of them—one big earthquake re do rd ed here on Friday afternoon, and tlie othcir early oil Sunday morning. From the reports about the first one it was feared that the Pacific Cable Station, at Fanning Island, would he in jeopardy, as it seemed possible that the .seismic wave reported from Honolulu might have seriously affected Fanning Island. “I was favoured bv tin Rost and Telegraph Department, which put uuj inquiry through to Funning Island, and the cable came back that the .seismograph at the island had recorded the earthquake on Friday afternoon and also the one on Sunday morning. Both ill New Zealand and in Fanning Island the record of the Sunday morning earthquake was more intense than the record of the one on Friday. The cablegram added that at Fanning island they had not felt any tremors at all, and had not had any damage done: so that is good news. “I don’t think I can say much more, except that the records are very clear and distinct here. They are full of interest technically, when we come to get the particulars a.s to the distance away, and so on; but it will take a

good deal of working out. “We aro equipped, it is dear, to catch everything that is going in the •*’ w*ty of tremors and ’quakes ; hut our difficulty is that we are only getting part of the story. It happenss, however that thesa earthquakes came from the direction from which they had lull effect on our seismograph. The machine happens to he pointing just the way to get them. But, ns J have explained before, until we have another seismograph at right angles to it wo can’t get the direction of the earthquakes; we can only get roughly the distance they are away.