The Tarawera Disaster.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XII, Issue 1737, 18 June 1886, Page 4

The Tarawera Disaster.

(Specials to the Auckland Star.)

We take the following from the Auckland Star reports :— One of the English tourists thus relates his experience: — We went en Sunday to Wairoa. On Tuesday we went to see the Terraces, and are the last visitors who. will probably see such . On Wednesday it rained, aiid at 10 p.m. earthquakes began rocking; the house m which we stajed (Brent's Hotel.") The shocks became more frequent aud severe from midnight till 2 a.m. when a terrific eruption occurred. Huge mountains of flame issued forth and wont upwards toward the sky with atr.mendous roaring sound, ■which prevented us hearing a word spoken. Thpn a dense mass of smoke belched forth, aud gradually spreading over the heavens, we were presently enshrouded m as gloomy a darkness as previously we were surronndi ed by a dazzling Hsjht, the transfoima? tion being very painful and terrifying to most of us. * The earthquakes' continued intetv mittingly till four o'clock, when ashes came up and a great thunder. ~~ storm broke over the pl«ce, and still: further intensified the alarm. ThY ashes wore fouud to be three feet deep., at a distance of seven miles from the township. The volcanic" eruption is said to have been precoiled a wopk ago by a tidal wave on Lake Tarawera, and the Maoris were afraid to go up with their canoes. Another circumstance which iucreased their superstition was tun follows: — Some tourists and natives were standing on the border of the lake when a large war canoe is said to bave appeared, m which were men standing upright using their paddles. A native woman who was with the tourists called to those m the ■ canoe, bub ifc suddenly disappeared rom view, aud was regaided by them as being a phantom cunoe, an omen of the evil which has befallen their tribe. They are satisfied it was an apparition, as they have no war canoe. Tourisis regard it m the same light as the phantom coach m London. Harry Kent, Mannger for Catter's coaches, says he first noticed the phenomenon at 11 o'clock, when 20 miles away from Rotorun, the ashes having actually travelled that distance against the wind and met him, the ashes falling softly and noiselessly on tie coach and horses ; arid the nea'rvr lie got to the township the thicker ■was thefall. When 10 miles from Rotortia he met Mr Burrows, the architect, and Mr Keyes, bu lder, ■who fled the sceue and utayed m the bnsb till the coach came along toward^ JKauMfrfn the 'most plucky manner, reported to him that and Mcßae's families were While dragging; through the Bush on his errand ot mercy, met four girls. Two were very bitterly for the loss of and sister. The other two servants, one of whom with a window blind round her and a night dress. extraordinary phenomenon above, the Post, thus relast we published an effect that a few days beeruption some tourists were on the borders of Lake when they saw a large war PMfcT apparently gliding along the placid water, the Mnories landingUpright using their paddles. This, it was stated, was regarded as an omen of ihe evil which has eince befallen the tribe. Readers would probably look upon this as purely imaginative; fffiere is, however, if the evidence of V w«H known gentleman, who alleges flip saw the spectacle, may be Hccredit«d, and w« nee no reason to disbelieve jijh Btatement, incredable though it C u y appear, Mime truth m the state-. Ho w now m Wellington, Wjn ijje day m question was on a WS\RntQinahuna gotge mem-

the bank of the lake as stated m the telegram,., hub was m a canoe propelled by some. Maoris. While skirting the southern shore, those m the tourists' canoe distinctly saw a Maori war canoe gliding along; nearly parallel to and apparently racing them. Ihe Maoiis m the tourists' canoe hailed ; hose m the war canoe, hut received no answer, and as the former roun<l<-d' the bend m the direction of Py itomahana, the latter shot out of vu>w m a north-easterly direction. Tie Maoris immediately became terri fied, and exclaimed '• Taipo !" Tiiey said there was no war canoe m the district, and therefore this must be a phantom indicative of evil When the natives and tourists returned to Wairoa, they made enquiri •; s of the oldest natives, i all of £ whom, declared , that such a I: canoe as de oribed had never been seen by them. Mr M'Rae, who has l»eeu 17 years m Te Wairoa, also sai«l he never knew a war canoe npon upon the "'aters of the Lake Country. The gentleman spoken of above, states thai the day was' beautifully clear, and there was nothing m the atmosphere to cause, an optical delusii)\j. Tnere is no feasible explanation of the phenomenon ; the fact of its appearance can scarcely be doubted.

Mr H. Burb* who was ait G-alatea, appeared to have had an opportunity' of seeing the eruption from a different standpoint 1 to 'mosc people. He ! s a ys: — I heard a -roar^ and, watched fi»p & few niinutis. Suddenly an' awful fire.bur.,l forth, and one side of the mountain was thrown out to wards Mount Then the; other Bide burst out, and directlyafter Taraweia Mountain top was .lifted right off. ••' For soiirie time it kept fulling m front, carrying whole, .forests "of timber into' the enormous crater. The volcano burst for halfan hoar, wwheyn y after a number of the ; projecting pei<ks had tumbled into the crater, the eruption suddeuly ceased, the crater having gqt'choked up with mateiiaVof aninconiiiustible nature, clay or ropkl" The effect of this stoppage was an explosion at Rotomahaha, succeeded by continued eruptions extending for five miles Jong .by ,a mjlft and ? a, half.% wide. I'was two days getting into itotoma, IjKiiw & burions shaped block ? bf puhiice with tfie ! words *f'Kopua ki," m writing on it The oldest natives who have seen it were not aware of its existence. I waa hit all over the body and head with stones, and nearly suffocated at iuaeß. yiii.-s?.?*' -»■>'■** ; ■-Sr.u' •'■- : - v ■•'•:

[The above, items w.ere published as. a supplement to a' portion ' of 'the Town Edition of our previous issue. |