WELLINGTON'S EARLY EARTHQUAKES.

Marlborough Express, Volume XXXIX, Issue 113, 16 May 1906, Page 3

WELLINGTON'S EARLY EARTHQUAKES.

A SENSATIONAL EXPERIENCE

No more vivid description of the big earthquakes that did so much damage in Wellington in the early days has been published than is to be found m the " Life of. John Phmnier, the '•'Father of Wellington," which he printed for private circulation. In view of the recent disaster at fean Francisco, this graphic account.of \\ ellington's misfortunes is particularly appropriate. The first of the quakes which so alarmed the early settlers took place in 1848, when the buildings were of such a primitive character that little real damage was done "except the loss of chimneys and the destruction of glass and china." In Mr Plimmer's house "books, china, glassware, and other articles were hurled from the shelves across the room. After that, the era of. wooden houses began, as people were afraid of brick or clay. Before long, however,, the cost of insurance drove merchants and shopkeepers to build in brick, and thus, when the second disastrous earthquake of 1855 occurred, it had plenty of material, to work upon. Three heavy shocks were felt, and they were linked by. a continuous quivering. The first shock, on a Monday, did little damage, but the second, on the Tuesday, brought down many chimneys and injured large brick stores, especially those with heavy slate roofs. Mr Plinimer was sent for to see what he could do for a large bonded store of Captain Rhodes's, which threatened to fall. He decided to'clamp it together with iron rods, and had just climbed to the top of a long ladder, so see how it could best be done, when the third and heaviest shock took place. Mr Plimmer's position was one of extreme danger and discomfort. " With some difficulty," he wrote, " I gained a firm footing on the ladder, when I saw it was certain death to go down. So 1 held fast to the slates on both sides of the ladder, and held on for my life. Sometimes the rocking building leaned over so far that I could scarcely hold the ladder to the wall." When the shock had diminished to a light quivering Mr Plimmei;, instead of getting to the ground as quickly as possible, utilised his lofty and perilous position to see what had happened to the town. "The sight was at once appalling and distressing, chimneys, were down, houses seriously damaged, and the gable end of the new. Wesleyan Chapel had collapsed, and the building was otherwise seriously injured. But the most curious thing was the way* in which the Te Aro bog (the area between Taranaki Street and Kent Terrace) was moving. It was rolling like a heavy sea, but looked more like a field of waving corn in a high wind." The earthquake was a terrible "blow to the infant city, but it would have been infinitely worse if, instead of raising the land in and around Wellington four or five feet,as it did, it had lowered it to that extent.