THE VOLCANIC ERUPTION. A FRESH OUTBURST. Narrow Escape of an Exploring Party.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2185, 10 July 1886, Page 2

THE VOLCANIC ERUPTION. A FRESH OUTBURST. Narrow Escape of an Exploring Party.

On Thursday morning it wan evident to people in Waikato and on the East Coast that a treaty outburst had taken place at Rotnmahann. \ dense cloud was Heon to I rise suddenly, but it did not long continue. Subsequent report* 1 , from Rotorua confirmed tho opinion that a fresh eruption had occurred, though fortunately it was of a comparatively mild character.

[BY TBLKUIUI'H. --OWM CORKKSI'ONDE.VT.] Auckland, Friday. The Star expedition to explore Rotomahana, with the object of discovering the Hite of the Terraces, had a narrow e^c ipe. They were down in the l>ed of the lake yesterday morning when tho fresh eruption occurred. Describing the eruption, the correspondent Hays :— " On approaching the crater, despite warnings, wo went within a fow yards. Warbrick was proposing a descent to tho crtiter< whoii wr experienced a heavy earthquake shock, und in a ininuto we were enshrouded in a dense volume ot steam. The big crater was in eruption. Columns of jet blapk>moke, mingled with steam arose, and' hundreds of atones, sot no apparently much larger than a man's head, were thrown hundreds of foet in the air. Warbijek's .face showed that he feared wo were in a ,«baflE]"Th6 Wind; though putfJVblew towards the crater, or the record of the oxpedition would never have been written. Wo made tracks with all expedition right iritoi'tbe. find's cy£ U«t progress was \ery slow, owing to tho increased softening of tho mud through the condensed steam falling ontlfe ground! After plodding laboriously for a quarter of a mile, during the course of which our clothes became wet through, the guide observed that tho wind was blowing steadily towards tho crater, and that there was now no danger. We lay down in the mud thoroughly exhausted, and watched the volcano for half-au-hour or more. Tho smoke ascended to a tfreat height, and quite obscured the sun, and out of the crater showers of mud and stones were thrown incessantly, accompanied by hoarse roars. Presently a little ray of sunlight penetrated the cloud above and then old Sol shone out in full light, producing a magnificent rainbow exactly above the crater. Piior to the eruption assumingthis severe form, the members of the expedition had passed over the place where the Pink Terrace once stood. There is nothing there now but enormous deposits of ejected volcanic matter. To understand the difficulty of locating the exact site of the terrace, it must b& btrtne in mind that the whole character of Rotomahanaanditssurronndingahaa completely changed. Where there was once a lake of considerable extent is now an enormous crater with numerous smaller craters. Millions of tons of ejected mattet have covered up the old bed of the lake and the adjacent hills. Where was formerly water is now dry land. Whether the Pink Terrace is intact or in ruins it is completely buried under this deposit. Its condition can now only be ascertained by extensive excavation, which it would never p-.y to make. The party, in one of the craters, which they descended by the aid of a rope, believe they could trace the outline of a portion of tho terrace, but this is a pure matter of speculation. Their exploration, however, confirms the opinion thdt the la»t ha«« been seen of those wonderful structures. Owing to tho eruption the work of further exploration had to be abandoned.