NEW PLYMOUTH.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume VII, Issue 1950, 27 March 1885, Page 2

NEW PLYMOUTH.

(PROM OUR OWN OQRP3PONDENT.) March 20th. One of the heaviest galea experienced on this coast was felt on Saturday, : The effect, while it lasted, was something terrific. In town the damage done % the storm was not nearly so severe as in the ont-districts—merely resulting in the upsetting of about a dozen chimneys, a few out-houses, and blowing in three or four windows. The scene, however, ,in the main street, was at times ludicrous in the extreme, hats and umbrellas careering through the air, with the respective Owner, hair and coat-tails flying, jn full pursujt;' The" cabbies" a business The direction of the gale .was, from the North-east, though one seeded to meet it at every turn. At Qppake, the roof of the Hail ww blown completely off, sfiip pf the iron roofing being carried a greftt distance, Jnnumerablo chimneys vfere.topped over, and all the buildings received a severe shaking. Hawera and Patea also experienced the force of the gale, as was evident by the quantity of loose timber and bricks strewn about; the shop windows also suffering severely. At the White Cliffs the hurricane seems to haye been felt with more than ordinary violence, pearly all tho whares occupied by tls Armed Constabulary were blown down, and the families of the married men were compelled to seek protection elsewhere, One of the men (a sergeafl|; in the force), a very- narrow escape for his. life, his habitation being fylown do,wn while he was endeavoring (o save some of the contents, burying him in the ruins. He, however, luckily escaped wjthoijt. a scratch, the lqppe tinker filing on either sjde of h|rt|, Towards eyeing the Storm died pay, and the faces of the residents here— whjch were full of unconcealed alarm all through its durationshowed the satisfaction they felt. ■ The breakwater was well tested, the sea at times completely burying Jt from sight, The only damage it sustained was the earring away of two of the immense concrete blocks which form the outward parapet, They were lying loosely on the lop, and were hurled some distance over by the force of the wind and waves, These have since been recuvered and placed in their position, This storm has, I think, beon one of the greatest tcßts the breakwater lias yet received, and there is no foar as to its suitability for the purpose for which it is being constructed. We experienced a Blight shock of earthquake here last. week. The direction was apparently from North to South, and the vibration lasted several seconds. From telegraphic news, it would appear the pipe shock was pretty generally felt throughout the North Msnd.

On Thursday evening the New Plymouth Philharmonic Society gave another of its enjoyable concerto in the Alexandra Hall, The room waa well filled and the programme thorouglily appreciated by the audienoe, One notable item on the programme was the production of Neils W. Gade's'fantasia on the old Danish legend "The Erl-King's Daughter." The rendering of this difficult part was perfect, the weird, wild music running through it being very truely brought out, and meeting with groat favour at the hands of the audienoe, The choruses were- well sustained, showing the society had been indefatigable in itß practice, and had. made every endeavor to make the production a thorough success. The society now is in a good financial position, and as the majority of the people are musically inclined, we should now haveasociety of which we could have pesnwng tf) fep j^tlyproufl. The Taran'aki/Hortjcultural Society held a meeting recently, when it was decided to hold the annual autumn show on the Bth of April, A working committee waa appointed to make the necossary arrangement for holding the ahow. These exhibitions are generally successful, and the coming one, with the present favorable season, should be no exception to the rule.

Arrangements In connection with -a newly - formed _ oompany called "The Mokau Industrial Goal Oompany" have jußt beon completed, and it is expected .that in about a month's time coal from the mine will be placed regularly in the mar- : ket. The deposit is found in a seam some eight feet deep, and is about; 160 ft from the river bank, bo but very little difficulty will be experienced in transferring the coal from the mine to the vessels' side for shipment to other ports. A ship's boat was found on the sea

beach near Bell Block (about sjs miles from town) a few days since, was shaped like a whale-boat, and pjunted black and white, but there was no indication as to the owner. In her were found some thousands of small dried fish, not unlike sardines, bat which seemed strange to those who made the discovery, .the Maoris being also unable. to recognise them, It was tho'ight probable the boat had brokon away from some foreign vessel, but' I have since learned she ia owned by a resident at the Mokau, and that the strange (?) fish were no other than the common herring, doubtless ..shipped -by some of the heavy Beas she had experienced, and washed by the force of the . waves into an unrecognisable mass. The Gairloch excursionists returned 1 ,-" home by that boat last week. From all A accounts they had a very pleasant voyage going to Onehunga, having a piano on board, and indulging in a musical;evening. They also enjoyed themselves in Auckland, the weather being beautifully fine; but of the return journey I fancy the less said the better. It is true they had a' 1 musical evening" (?)—the changes beingcomposedofheavingsand The weather had been threatening for some days, and many non-excursionists on hearing that the boat had left for the return journey,: expressed an opinion that those on board would get a rocking before reaching this port. A tremendous sea was running here on the morning of her arrival, and fears were at first entertained that she would be unable to put in. However, the difficulty lfoa got safely over, comparatively smooth water being found inside the breakwater. The unfortunate passengers presented a pitiable appearance on landing, looking very seedy, and splashed all over with sea water. A good night's.test, howeVer, mado them as jolly as ever, and hiph eulogiums were passed upon the officers and crew of the boat for their attentiveneßs during the voyage.: : . The big native gathering at Waitara takes place next week, when about fir' thousand natives are expected tobepfsent. The present occupants of the psL A have been very busy during the month preparing for the reception of the^ visitors, and quite a town of tents anK whareshas been erected for their accommodation. On Monday about one thousand, under the chief Titokowaru, are expected to pass through New Plymouth, and will remain in town five hours, They stay at the Waiwakaito pah two days, proceeding thence by easy stages to Waikato, where they expect to arrive towards the end of the week, The gathering is to be conducted strictly upoii temperance principles, and the motive is said to be purely friendly,