1835. 



TOME — COLIUMO— MAULE. 



41T 



In the small port of Coliumo, close to the northward of 

 Concepcion Bay, the waves rose about as high as at Tome, 

 nearly fourteen feet before they reached the shore. The little 

 village of Dichato shared the general calamity ; but, standing 

 rather higher and more distant from the sea than Talcahuano, 

 it escaped the ravages of that element. 



At the mouth of the Maule the force and height of the 

 waves must have been considerably diminished ; for no particular 

 effect was noticed at the time, nor were there any marks upon 

 the shore by which the height of the wave could be afterwards 

 ascertained. That the sea should not there have occupied 

 attention is not surprising, when one considers the locality of 

 La Constitucion, as the port and town are called. On level 

 low land, at the south side of the river, lies the town ; between 

 which and the sea there is high land, and a distance of about a 

 mile. The river winds round the northern promontory of the 

 high land, and then fights its way to sea over a bar, on which 

 there are always breakers. There are no houses on the sea- 

 shore ; and, without going half a-mile up the hill, the sea 

 cannot be seen ; naturally then, for some time after the town 

 was ruined by the earthquake, the inhabitants would be en- 

 gaged in saving and sheltering their property, rather than 

 looking at the ocean. I could not ascertain whether the river 

 had risen or not : and having previously heard that the waves 

 were very powerful at the mouth of the Maule, I was a good 

 deal surprised to find they had been almost unnoticed : but 

 all attention seemed to have been engrossed with the earth- 

 quake. 



A vessel, lying close under the promontory mentioned above, 

 was obliged to move as quickly as possible, when the shocks 

 began, so serious was the shower of stones which rattled down 

 the hill and fell about, and on board of her. I was assured 

 by the governor, by the chief pilot, and by other residents, 

 that instead of the land having been elevated at all, they 

 considered that it had sunk about two feet. The pilot said 

 he had found two feet more water on the bar, since the great 

 shock, and that he was certain the banks of the river were 



VOL. II. 2 E 



