TARAWERA ERUPTION.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 139, 13 June 1936, Page 8

TARAWERA ERUPTION.

MEMORIES OF A BOY. (To the Editor.) At the time of the Tarawera volcanic eruption my father and mother were livi n , at Paengaroa, Tauranga, on Hicks' farm, an! my brother and I were sleeping in the same room together. I was then ten years of age, and my brother was nearly three years younger. We both woke up in the night when loud "reports were going off every now, and again and the house was shaking violently. We were both so frightened that we seemed unable to call out to our father and mother sleeping in another room. I said, "What's that, Ben? Do you think it's the end of the world?" He said, "I don't know." Then we both said our prayers and resigned ourselves quietly and peacefully to whatever fate was in store for us. Strange thing to say, after we-liad said our prayers we just seemed to snuggle up to one another and fall cff to sleep, and .slept peacefully until the morning was well advanced. After our night's rest we all went out of the house and noticed that fine ash was starting to fall, the colour of slate, and the fowls were going to roost, because there seemed to be an eclipse of the 6un on account of the ash getting between the sun and the earth. For days after the eruption we had several shakes, and after the ash had fallen on the grass lands of Tauranga in several places we could hear the cattle across the deep gorge that runs between Paengaroa and Te Puke bellowing as they were being driven to fresh fields and pastures new. Rain did not come very soon to wash the ash oa the grass, and even where we were living we noticed the ash had a deterimental effect on the grass for quite a long time. Remembering the fright I got, although our experience coukTnot be compared, with that of those who were closer to the eruption, I have always felt since that I was quite close enough. J. E. GHAMBERLAIX.