Minor Earthquake Hits Boston Area

The second earth tremor in two weeks hit the New England coast yesterday afternoon at 5:38 p.m.

The Boston College seismograph station in Weston described the tremor as "a slight earthquake lasting from five to ten seconds." The center of the disturbance was in Boston Harbor, and it was felt as far as about fifteen miles inland in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

Dull Rumble

Yesterday's quake vibrated, rather than shook, a number of homes and was followed by a slight, dull rumble. There were no reports of damage or injuries.

L. Don Leet, professor of Geology, said last night that the tremor was less severe than the one felt at Harvard on October 16, and should not cause any special concern. He said, however, that the reoccurrence of small disturbances bears out his contention that "we're working on a big one."

Leet has predicted that in the next fifty years Boston will experience a major earthquake similar to the one of 200 years ago. In the meantime, he said, "we can expect small and moderate tremors which are nothing to be afraid of."

Four Tremors

There have actually been more disturbances than were felt, Leet pointed out. On the 16th, for example, there were really four tremors, only one of which was strong enough to be generally noticed.

That shock, however, caused wide-spread comment and even some panic. Its epicenter was located about 60 miles northeast of Cambridge, and it was felt as far away as Maine.