Hawkes Bay Herald. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 1867. THE NEWS BY THE MAIL

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 12, Issue 905, 31 December 1867, Page 2

Hawkes Bay Herald. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 1867. THE NEWS BY THE MAIL

Is, this mouth, of a truly appalling character. A fearful hurricane has taken place at St. Thomas — a Danish West ludia possession, and a coaling place for the W, I. Company's steamers — resulting in terrible destruction of property and loss of life. Another terrific hurricane has taken place at Calcutta, with like destructive effects Following this calamity is one equally, if not more, appalling — an earthquake, resulting in the destruction of nearly every building on the island, and also in considerable loss of life. One, if not two, of our own settlers had a very narrow- escape, luiviug been'i~in ~St; Thomas harbour at the time, and iv imminent danger of being submerged by tbe tidal wave. Tbe hurricane and the earthquake having been experienced ; the pestilence completes the doleful trio. The yellow fever has been unusually virulent this season, and it is depressing to think that in the number of victims should have been one who had left those shores but a few weeks previously. To those occurrences and to the last scene in the wonderful drama of Italy, as well as other news of iuterest, we devote nearly all our available space. We cannot, therefore, as we should like to do, cast a retrospective glance upon the year that is past, with its joys and its sorrows, but must content ourselves with looking hopefully forward to the future, and with wishing our readers A HAPPY NEW YEAR,