Pond (ind Smith. — On the Eruption of Mt. Tarawera. 349 



that the Pink Terrace had been in eruption, throwing out mud 

 for several yards round, an occurrence which has never been 

 noted before. 



It will be remembered that on the evening previous to the 

 eruption an occultation of Mars by the Moon occurred, at 10.20 

 p.m., the moon bemg just then entering her second quarter. It 

 would be high water on the coast near Maketu that evening 

 at about 10 p.m. We do not giye much importance to these 

 facts, but it is worthy of note that the well-known theory of the 

 tides assumes that the waters of the ocean are at high water 

 piled up, as it were, on that particular portion of the earth's 

 surface which is just under the moon ; but through friction, and 

 the counter attraction of the sun, that the tidal -wave lags after 

 the time of passing of the moon over any particular meridian. 

 It is equally a part of this theory that the solid materials of the 

 earth are at the same moment subject to a wave — much more 

 limited in extent, but still appreciable ; and it is well known 

 that an atmospheric wave passes round the earth at 2 o'clock 

 each day. Hence, the crust of the earth being in a state of 

 tension, if there is any predisposing cause tending to a fracture 

 about the period of this earth-wave, it is a natural inference 

 that the conditions are then most favourable for the production 

 of such fractures. The attraction of the planet Mars, added to 

 that of the Moon, may be, and doubtless is, very slight ; but 

 the fact remains that, whatever influence the moon may exert 

 at any particular moment, it happened to be greater, by the 

 sum of her own and that of the planet, very shortly before the 

 eruption. 



The state of the barometer, as recorded by the self-regis- 

 tering instrument at Kotorua, does not indicate any abnormal 

 depression, either shortly before or during the catastrophe. It 

 is found that on Tuesday, the 



8th, at noon, the reading was 29-40, reduced to sea-line, 30-20 



from which time it altered little for the next two days. It will 

 be seen that there was a somewhat sudden fall a little before 

 noon on the Tuesday, but still nothing extraordinary, or such 

 as we learn has occurred at other great outbursts in other parts 

 of the world. 



