Accordingly he opened the door; and no sooner had he done
this, than he cried out, "Here it comes again!" and the famous
shock commenced. The whole party escaped. The danger in an
earthquake is not from the time lost in opening the door, but from
the chance of its becoming jammed by the movement of the walls.
It is impossible to be much surprised at the fear which natives and
old residents, though some of them known to be men of great command
of mind, so generally experience during earthquakes. I think,
however, this excess of panic may be partly attributed to a want of
habit in governing their fear, as it is not a feeling they are
ashamed of. Indeed, the natives do not like to see a person
indifferent. I heard of two Englishmen who, sleeping in the open
air during a smart shock, knowing that there was no danger, did not
rise. The natives cried out indignantly, "Look at those heretics,
they do not even get out of their beds!"
I spent some days in examining the step-formed terraces of shingle,
first noticed by Captain B. Hall, and believed by Mr. Lyell to have
been formed by the sea during the gradual rising of the land. This
certainly is the true explanation, for I found numerous shells of
existing species on these terraces.
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