Severe ’Quake

In Solomon Islands

Houses And Wharf

Destroyed At Su’U.

A WIRELESS message received by Mr. W. R. Wood, managing sec retary of the Malayta Co. Ltd., Sydney, from the manager of the com pany at Su’u, on the island of Malaita, British Solomon Islands, reported that

a very severe earth quake had been ex perienced there on Oc tober 4.

All the European houses and most other buildings at Su’u had been badly damaged, and the company’s wharf destroyed.

Extensive damage had also occurred at the South Sea Evangelical Mission’s headquarters at One Pusu. No lives had been lost.

Su’u is situated about 60 miles east of Tulagl.

The Burns, Philp is land liner Montoro, reached there on Octo ber 20, to load copra, and the local manager of the Malayta com pany immediately took advantage of her wire less installation to no tify the Sydney office of the earthquake.

There is only a handful of Euro peans on Malaita, on which the main industry is the gathering of copra.

’Quake Recorded In Sydney

This earthquake was recorded on the seismographs at Riverview Obser vatory, Sydney.

Father O’Leary, who is in charge of the observatory, said that the shocks had been very large, and the fact that the damage was not terrific led him to believe that the centre of the disturbance must have been on the bed of the ocean.