THE FIJI HURRICANE.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 158, 28 March 1908, Page 7

THE FIJI HURRICANE.

■ Vv EXTENT OE THE DAMAGE. : ■ r . : (by telegraph—rnEss . association.) ..- ' ' . Auckland, March? 27. •The'cablc(l|informai!on from l<ni published "on : Wednesday last to the effect that during .tho'. recent lnirricano uie, unimnaiplantations were: damaged, has nreated widespread agitation amongst importers of. tho fruit in question. Until civ,ifirmation of the report is' received,...it 'cannot, of course, .be.'estimated '.wjiat. the. extent of tho damage. is. Should .their- worst fears be realised; the importers will'suffer A "ilerald"i representative yesterday- interviewed .Mr. J. Bagot Birch,'lsland agent, who' his for many years been connected with' the trade,..aVd is an old resident of_ Fiji. From him. an idea of the serious possibilities of'the situation were obtained. . "Too much notice must not be taken' of first reports," said Mr. Birch, " though undoubtedly much daniago must have .occurred' through the■ late hurricane. Personally, having ' experienced 0110 of the worst, hurricanes that' ever visited .Fiji-r-tliat of : 1880—I caii conscientiously say that'my hopes of Receiving'; better liews are small. 'A blow '"'iu,• Fiji/ means absohito ruinto wherever it strikes;- it is not like ah Amcri-' which' takes a track; of v froni; say, 100-yards to ii mile wide, but it comes down with irresistiblo force, from north, south', east', and iyest, withih a few minutes, and absolutely, annihilates. ] everything . - before it." : i