John Hardcastle of Timaru (1847-1927): Journalist

and Geologist !ut mostl" #riter

Ian Smalley
They travelled to New Zealand in 1858; from Gravesend
to Lyttelton on the Maori, cost 55 for the whole family
(there was a s!sidy from the "rovincial #overnment$%
Thomas and &ary 'ardcastle and their seven children(
)ohn was the oldest at ten( They were a *or+shire family;
Thomas was descri!ed in the shi""in# docments as
,la!orer and mechanic- and they went to New Zealand to
!ecome somethin# more rewardin# and satisfactory( )ohn
was !orn in 18./ and died in Timar in 101/( 'is was a
"ro"er New Zealand e2istence and he contri!ted to life in
several ways( 'e was a 3ornalist; he s"ent .4 years with
the Timaru Herald% !ecomin# editor for a !rief "eriod% and
he was a #eolo#ist% an amater #eolo#ist !t a dedicated
and e2"ert "ractitioner( 'is hammer and hand lenses
reside in the Soth 5anter!ry &sem% and he is
!ecomin# more a""reciated as his #eolo#ical wor+ is
e2amined closely( 'is #eolo#ical virte was in carefl and
e2act descri"tion% and of corse his descri"tions are still
valid and vala!le( 'is theories and inter"retations may
have "roved wron# !t the descri"tions are sefl( 'e
was a writer% and it may !e that he shold !e most
a""reciated as a writer% as a #enerator of a form of
literatre% as a real contri!tor to New Zealand writin#(
Now his writin# mi#ht !e descri!ed as ,"o"lar science-
and there is a #reat vo#e for it( 6t there is somethin#
more a!ot the 'ardcastle writin#% it is more than 3st
"o"lar science% there is an air of association% this is the
essence of Soth 5anter!ry% this is a s"ecial loo+ at the
'nters 'ills and the other wonders of Soth 5anter!ry(
)' "!lished lon# "ieces in the Timar 'erald( 'e was the
ri#ht "erson in the ri#ht "lace at the ri#ht time with the
ideal 3ornal availa!le( 6t% this s"ecial "lace did not have
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"articlarly #ood connections to the world at lar#e%
"erha"s even to the rest of New Zealand% so the lar#e
scale a""reciation has !een delayed( 'e was a writer and
his writin#s shold !e accessi!le and a""reciated(
'e wrote steadily while he was with the 'erald and he
tended to write% as !efitted his character% detailed
descri"tive "ieces( They are not hmoros "ieces !t
sometimes he dis"lays a nice sense of irony( 'e descri!ed
the remar+a!le #eolo#ical fortne that had "rovided
Timar with a har!or and an income for the inha!itants7
89 "a"er of considera!le len#th mi#ht !e written on the
effect of the e2istence of lava roc+s on the character of
the coastline !etween :areora and ;ashdy+e% !t we
mst !e content with remar+in# that !t for these roc+s
at sea level% there cold !e no "ort of Timar today% nor
any s##estion that an artificial har!or cold !e made
anywhere !etween <amar and 6an+s- :eninsla( The
reefs in the sea and on the coast are the material
fondation of the shi""in# trade of Timar% and the
artificial moles are !t additions and im"rovements "on
the "rovision made !y Natre for the convenience of the
im"ort and e2"ort trade of Soth 5anter!ry(=
(Notes on the Geolo#y of Soth 5anter!ry 1048$(
The family disem!ar+ed at Lyttelton on 11 9"ril 1858 and
Thomas soon fond em"loyment at Lon#!each% near the
moth of the 'inds river% where he was in char#e of
>it?#erald% 5o2 @ 5o-s cattleA#ra?in# station( In 18BC%
after Lon#!each was sold% Thomas !o#ht the "ro"erty of
5astlewood% near Geraldine(
Thomas was a man of character and determination% as
shown !y the decision to move to New Zealand% and he
made a considera!le im"act on the local commnity( 'e
"layed a ma3or "art in the constrction of St 9nnes chrch
at :leasant Dalley near Geraldine% one of the oldest e2tant
chrches in New Zealand(154
th
anniversary in 141C$(
9t 5astlewood he !ro+e in the land for a dairy farm( )ohn%
as a !oy of 1B% went to Timar% then a "ioneer settlement
of a!ot 1444% to rn a mil+ rond% and after that he
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cold not settle !ac+ on the farm% which% as eldest son he
was e2"ected to do( The mil+ delivery !siness failed% de
to com"etition% and for the ne2t few years )ohn travelled
arond the Soth Island doin# a variety of 3o!s and% after
another "eriod at 5astlewood% went to 5hristchrch to
train as a school teacher( This he com"leted in 9stralia
on 1C 9"ril 18/8(
'e came !ac+ to New Zealand and was a""ointed teacher
at ;aihi 6sh School near Geraldine( 'e s"ent a short
"eriod as actin# headmaster of the Tem+a School and
!ecame 5hairman of the :leasant Dalley School
5ommittee% and it was while has was actin#Aheadmaster
at Tem+a School that he ventred into 3ornalism% with
the Temuka Leader( In 18/0% in his early thirties% he
!ecame a 3nior re"orter and "roofreader with the Timaru
Herald and a"art from a "eriod of a!ot three years when
his family moved to Na"ier% his association with the
'erald was to contine for nearly forty yearsA mostly as a
re"orter% then s!Aeditor% and on two occasions as editor(
;hile he was livin# in Na"ier he 3oined the 'aw+es 6ay
!ranch of the New Zealand Institte( 'e is on the !ranch
mem!ershi" list from 1885 to 1888( 9lso while he was
livin# in Na"ier &ont Tarawera er"ted% the #reat
er"tion of 188B which destroyed the :in+ @ ;hite
terraces and cased mch #eolo#ical e2citement( :ossi!ly
as a reslt of this s"ectaclar er"tion )ohn "!lished his
first scientific "a"er% his first attem"t at scientific writin#(
The "a"er was read !efore a meetin# of the 'aw+e-s 6ay
:hiloso"hical Institte on the 8
th
)ne 188/ and was
"!lished in the Transactions and :roceedin#s of the New
Zealand Institte; it discssed the cases of the Tarawera
er"tion; this !ro#ht him into conflict with :rofessor
'tton of 5hristchrch% then one of the eminent "eo"le of
New Zealand #eolo#y( )' was very critical of the 'tton
views and this may have !een the !e#innin# of lastin#
enmity( )' and 'tton later disa#reed on the formation of
the 5anter!ry :lains% and on the natre and formation of
loess de"osits( The 'ardcastle a""roach was very direct
and ncom"romisin#(
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89 re"ort has !een "!lished !y :rofessor 'tton >GS on
the Tarawera Dolcanic Eistrict in which he #ives the
conclsions he arrives at% after a visit to the locality and a
stdy of a s!ded "hase of activity% as to the cases of
the er"tion in )ne 188BF The e2"lanation #iven of the
case of the er"tion a""ears to me so mch at variance
with the "ro!a!ilities of the case% as to invite criticism%
es"ecially as the #eneral theory of volcanic action is
involved(= (Transaction @ :roceedin#s New Zealand
Institte 14% 1//A181% 188/$
'e retrned to Timar to ta+e " the editorshi" of the
South CanterburyTimes% and he 3oined the 5anter!ry
6ranch of the New Zealand Institte in 1880( 'is name is
on the mem!ershi" list from 1880 to 1808% and he
re3oined at the a#e of // in 101. and remained a mem!er
ntil his death in 101/( In 1880 and 1804 he "resented
the two "a"ers on loess soils and loess #rond which have
s!seGently !ecome Gite well +nown and are widely
reco#ni?ed as the first reco#nition that loess de"osits
contain "alaeoclimatic information(
In 1804 he does his !est science and thereafter he
devotes himself to writin#( This transition is o!served in
the lives of many eminent scientistHwriters% for e2am"le
Steve )ones or Iichard Eaw+ins( )' is "erha"s not in their
lea#e !t the transition is similar( So for a!ot the first
twenty years of the twentieth centry )' contri!ted his
detailed essays to the Timar 'erald( In 1048 a collection
of his #eolo#ical material was "!lished as a small !oo+
,Notes on the Geolo#y of Soth 5anter!ry- and he
coo"erated with )ohannes 9ndersen on the "re"aration of
the ,)!ilee 'istory of Soth 5anter!ry-("!lished in
101B$( The early "art of the )!ilee 'istory dealin# with
#eolo#y and related matters is essentially 'ardcastle
material( 'e was "articlarly lc+y in his settin#; Soth
5anter!ry is a re#ion which is otlined !y the Ian#itata
river to the northAeast and the ;aita+i to the sothAwest%
!y the Sothern 9l"s with 9ora+i &ont 5oo+ nicely
"laced in the northAwest and the Sothern :acific <cean
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to the sothAeast( 'e saw montains and #laciers% rivers
and la+es and "lains% coast and !each% !asalt and loess%
shin#le and sand(
8There is an enormos amont of wood on the !each% and
for a few miles from &ilford sothwards% many stm"s
and stic+s are seen in the !rea+ of the sea at hi#h tide(
The wood is for the most "art stm"s% tho#h some lo#s
have !een washed " in "ast years% that have #iven #ood
s"lit "osts( They are of totara% !lac+ "ine% white "ine%
ri!!on wood% and man+a% white "ine !ein# most
nmeros( Some of the trees were of lar#e si?e% three or
for feet in diameter; a short man+a tree not far from
;ashdy+e la#oon is a!ot 1 feet in diameter% Gite a lar#e
si?e for man+a( The totara and !lac+ "ine wood is% in
many cases% sond and hard% and the roots freGently
inclde even fine fi!res that loo+ as if they had !een dead
!t a year( *et this forest mst have !een !ried a very
lon# time% measred !y years( It is !ried nder 14 to 11
feet of clay or loam% in two strata se"arated !y a !ed of
la#oon md fll of drifted stic+s% and roots of man+a that
#rew on the s"ot( To discover the sli"s in the de"osition of
the loam and the s!sidence of the land which carried the
forest !ed down to sea level wold !e a nice little
#eolo#ical "ro!lem(
>or the rest there is not mch to see alon# the !each( 9n
oa+ !eam fll of wooden trenails% s##ested the wrec+ of
the 9+!ar; a very few "ieces of rsty iron "late% that of
the 5ity of 5ashmere( 9 co"le of smashed fenders and a
!ro+en "ile from the sta#in# !elon#ed to a later order of
sea storms(= (Timar 'erald 0 Novem!er 104.$
;as )' a ,Natre writerJ- It is easy eno#h% when
discssin# natre writin#% to refer to Tolstoy and Thorea
and )ohn 5lare and everyone ac+nowled#es their
"reeminence as natre writers% !t the )' writin# is of a
different ty"e and style( 'e is more descri"tive% less
"oetical; more local% less #eneral; more "ractical% less
theoretical( 9ctally of corse natre writin# has !een
chan#in# while the writers were writin#( In 1448 Granta
141 was devoted to ,The New Natre ;ritin#- and it was
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ac+nowled#ed that% for as lon# as "eo"le have !een
writin#% they have !een writin# a!ot natre% and as or
conce"tion and e2"erience of natre chan#es% so too does
the way we write a!ot it( There is a historical as"ect to
!e valed% the docmentary dimension needs to !e
a""reciated( )' arrived in Soth 5anter!ry soon after
that re#ion started to !e settled and develo"ed and he
records as"ects of a landsca"e which was in transition(
The :ort of Timar% firmly fonded on the &ont 'orri!le
!asalt% was develo"ed drin# his lifetime( The Timar
'erald itself came into !ein# and has "rovided the vehicle
for the historical records(
8The most remar+a!le stream in 5anter!ry is srely that
which claims the Ia+aia% 9sh!rton% Ian#itata% <rari%
<"ihi% :areora% <taio% &a+i+ihi% ;aihao and ;aita+i as its
tri!taries% that stream of !olders% "e!!les and sand
which flows alon# the eastern coast for 1.4 miles or
therea!ots; a stream which has neither !ed nor !an+; on
which one may wal+ dryshod or !e drowned% a !oat may
lie safely or !e swam"ed or wrec+ed; which flows% not li+e
water !t !y water% not !y #ravitation !t a#ainst it% !y
fits and starts% !oth ways !y trns% on the srface% and a
"art of the srface% and a "art of the srface only; whose
loss is not !y eva"oration or "ercolation !t !y tritration;
Athe 1.4 miles of shin#le !each that drifts alon#% defines%
and defends% the coast line from <amar to 6an+s-
:eninsla(
Kach of the rivers a!ove named% when in flood rolls alon#
its !ed into the sea smaller or lar#er Gantities of shin#le%
that has !een #radally !ro#ht down from every s"r
and every #lly% rid#e% and cliff% in the contry drained !y
its tri!taries%A with a reservation in the case of the
;aita+i( The ;aita+i delivers the lar#est loads% !t only
some of its tri!taries contri!te to them( The #lacier
streams which #o to form the Te+a"o% :+a+i and <ha%
the three chief !ranches of the ;aita+i% are ,silt tra""ed-
!y la+es% and their loads of shin#le% enormos ones% do
not reach the sea(= (Timar 'erald 1C 9"ril 1800$
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;hen articles were commissioned for Granta 141 less
interest was shown in what mi#ht !e called old natre
writin#A !y which was meant the lyrical "astoral tradition
of the romantic wandererA than in writers who a""roached
their s!3ect in heterodo2 and e2"erimental ways( The
desired contri!tions shold !e voice driven narratives
told in the first "erson% for the writer to !e "resent in the
story( The !est new natre writin#% it has !een s##ested%
is also an e2"eriment in forms7 the field re"ort% the essay%
the memoir% the travelo#e; all e2"lored in Granta 141(
;e mi#ht add the list% the catalo#e% the note!oo+( )'
satisfies the criteria% he was a natre writer% !t of
corse% !ein# )' he was well ahead of his times(

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