78 The East Anglian Earthquake.
Proceeding along the road towards East Mersea, several
cottages near Barrow Farm were observed to have lost their
chimneys. In one case, two outside flues running up the
opposite ends of a cottage were both completely detached
from the end walls and thrown down.
East Mersea.—The damage done here was on the whole
much less than at W. Mersea. The church tower was con-
siderably shaken and portion of the battlements at the north-
west corner thrown down. Mrs. George Bound reports that a
farm in the parish was considerably damaged. Respecting
the direction of the disturbance at this place Mr. H. C. Sorby,
F.E.S.87, describing the damage to the church, states that
"the manner in which two portions of the tower have been
thrown down seem to indicate a shock from north-west," but
he adds that it is " quite as probable that the damage was
done by the recoil which, over the greater part of the district,
was from that same north-west direction." To the extreme end
of the island but very little damage appears to have been done.
Before treating of the eastern portions of the area of
greatest destruction to the north of Mersea Island, the effects
of the disturbance on the promontory to the south of the
Blackwater River may be here described, as much damage
was done about Bradwell, and this district, although passed
over with slight notice in the early reports, must certainly be
comprised within the area of structural damage.
Bradwell.—About 40 chimney-stacks were reported to
have been thrown down, the greatest damage having occurred
in the neighbourhood of the church and of Weymarks Farm
(Mr. J. T. Gale) situated at the extreme north-east corner of
the promontory, where it was stated that only one chimney
was left standing among three houses, the farm-house itself
having been much wrecked. The church tower was shaken,
the roof partly untiled, and the rectory much damaged by the
fall of a chimney-stack. East Hall (Mr. G. Small) between
Weymarks and the village, was also damaged; several win-
dows were broken, and I was informed by Mr. E. A. Fitch, of
Maldon, that at this and a neighbouring house very heavy
37 'Nature,' May 29th 1884, p. 101.