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Art. LV. — On the earlier Earthquake Waves observed on the Coast of 

 New Zealand. By C. Davie, Chief Surveyor, Province of Canterbury. 



[Bead before the Philosophical Institute of Canterbury, November 4, 1868.] 



The vast extent of ocean over which tidal disturbances extended, caused by the 

 late earth qixakes along the coast of South America, have invested this subject 

 with a degree of importance which they did not before possess, especially to 

 those of us who live along the east coast of New Zealand. The object of the 

 present paper is to place on record certain facts in connection with similar 

 occurrences, which have been noticed in this country, in order that by degrees, 

 as other facts shall, from time to time, be brought together, some light may 

 possibly be thrown on the causes and effects of these remarkable phenomena. 



The first great earthquake in New Zealand, of which we have any certain 

 record, appears to have been that which occurred in October, 1848, and which 

 was felt from New Plymouth to Wellington, and possibly at Auckland. In 

 the South Island it extended from Nelson to Otago ; but it does not appear to 

 have done much damage excepting at Nelson and Wellington. This earth- 

 quake was felt at sea by a vessel, the " Sarah Ann," at some distance to the 

 north of Cape Farewell. No tidal disturbances appear to have been 

 noticed. 



Previously to this, in February, 1846, Mr. Hamilton, on a voyage from 

 Auckland round Cape Horn, when about 1500 miles east of New Zealand, 

 experienced a sharp shock of earthquake : the ship " David Malcolm " was in 

 deep blue water, but she vibrated from stem to stern ; some of the passengers 

 supposed they were grating over a ledge of rocks. 



The next great earthquake occurred on the 23rd January, 1855, and was 

 felt over the greater part of the northern and southern islands of New Zealand ; 

 this again was felt most severely at Wellington, at which place Commander 

 Drury, of H. M. S. " Pandora," was anchored ; I give extracts from his 

 account of what occurred. 



"At 11 minutes past 9 p.m., the north-west gale still blowing strong, we 

 felt suddenly an uncommon and disagreeable grinding, as if the ship was 

 grating over a rough bottom. It continued with severity for more than a 

 minute; the ship slewed broadside to the wind. We were in 6 fathoms at the 

 time. 



"Lieut. Jones and myself immediately landed, we found the tide alternately 

 ebbing and flowing. The gun at the flagstaff was turned over. The elemental 

 wave proceeded from W.N.W. to E.S.E. There was no apparent disturbance 

 of the barometer, or any apparent connection between the gale and the earth- 

 quake : we had however every l-eason to believe that the latter had imme- 

 diate local influence on the atmosphere, producing violent gusts after the shocks. 

 If it is a fact that the firing of artillery, or bush-fires, will produce a local calm by 

 the disturbance of the atmosphere, the phenomenon here may be more easily 

 accounted for. But a more interesting and extraordinary phenomenon 

 occurred, — I say extraordinary, because no person appears to have noticed it in 

 the earthquake of 1848 ; for eight hours subsequent to the first and great 

 shock the tide approached and receded from the shore every twenty minutes, 

 rising from 8 to 10 feet and receding 4 feet lower than at spring tides. 

 Our ship I heard was aground four times at her anchorage. The ordinary tide 

 seemed quite at a discount, for the following day, the 24th, it scarcely rose at 

 all. On the 25th we weighed for Nelson, and felt one shock in 26 fathoms, off 

 Sinclair Head (exactly the same feeling as when at anchor), and a slighter 

 shock, in 80 fathoms, off Queen Charlotte's Sound." 



At Nelson the shocks appeared to come in a N.E. direction. At Canter- 



