USA > Massachusetts > Plymouth County > Hingham > History of the town of Hingham, Massachusetts, vol 1 > Part 15
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LARGE or AMERICAN CRANBERRY ( Vaccinium macrocarpon, Ai- ton ). The Cranberry grows quite commonly in our swamps and bogs, its delicate sprays being quite easily found when loaded with its white flowers or crimson fruit.
MOUNTAIN PARTRIDGE BERRY ( Chiogenes serpyllifolia, Salis.). A pretty, evergreen, creeping plant, very rare, but existing in swamps in the extreme southerly part of the town. The bell- shaped white flowers are like those of the checkerberry, and a resemblance to this shrub is also found in the flavor of its white berries.
BEARBERRY ( Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, Sprengel). This pretty and rare little shrub, which grows in beds in the woods, has been found by the writer between Old Colony Hill and Weir River, at Martin's Lane, and at Liberty Plain. Its stem trails under the dead leaves and leaf mould, sending up shoots some six inches high, clothed with bright, polished, thick evergreen leaves. The flowers are white, at the ends of the branches. The fruit is a red berry.
TRAILING ARBUTUS, MAYFLOWER (Epigca repens, L.). The well- known Mayflower grows in the woods near the Weymouth line and in the extreme south part of the town. Efforts made to domesticate it nearer the seashore have been unsuccessful, as it is a very wild plant and does not take well to cultivation.
CREEPING WINTERGREEN, CHECKERBERRY ( Gaultheria procum- bens, L.). The Checkerberry is very common in our woods. Its bright evergreen leaves, sweet white flowers, and searlet aromatie berries are well known to all.
ANDROMEDA (Andromeda ligustrina, Muhl.). This shrub is common everywhere in low grounds. Its very full panicles of small, globular, white flowers in July are replaced later by cor- responding clusters of the seed-vessels, which hang on for a year or more. This plant can be distinguished at all seasons by its thin outer layer of light, cinnamon-colored bark, which seems always just ready to peel off.
LEUCOTHOE (Leucothoe racemosa, Gray). This beautiful shrub is rare in Hingham and but little known. It is found in the woods east of Old Colony Hill, in Cushing Street, in Leavitt Street woods, and probably grows elsewhere in the south part of the town. It is from six to ten feet in height, has rather strag- gling branches, and elliptical leaves, and long one-sided racemes of white, bell-like flowers, exquisite in beauty and fragrance. This raceme is generally branched once, and the flowers all hang
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The Trees and Shrubs of Hingham.
downward in a regular row. Their peculiar honey-like sweetness is unequalled by the perfume of any other of our plants.
LEATHER-LEAF ( Cassandra calyculata, Don). The Cassandra or Leather-leaf grows in the swamps near Weir River west of Union Street and at South Hingham. It is a bright, pretty shrub, two to five feet high, and has racemes of white sweet flowers much like those of the Leucothoe, but smaller. The fruit, as in many plants of the Heath family, is very persistent.
MOUNTAIN LAUREL ( Kalmia latifolia, L.). The Mountain Laurel, exquisite in its beauty, is found in great quantities just over the borders of Hingham, but within the limits of the township it is rare. It grows in one locality at least in the woods near Gardner Street, in Cushing Street woods, and perhaps may be found elsewhere.
SHEEP LAUREL (Kalmia angustifolia, L.). This plant, the blossom of which is not less beautiful, if less conspicuous, than the preceding species, is common all through Hingham.
The CLAMMY AZALEA or WHITE SWAMP HONEYSUCKLE (Rhodo- dendron viscosum, Torr.) grows in the wet woods of Summer Street, Martin's Lane, Lasell Street, and Turkey Hill, and is found also in other localities. Its pretty, white, very fragrant, and somewhat sticky flowers appear in conspicuous clusters and are of that trumpet-like shape common to the azalea tribe.
RHODORA (Rhododendron Rhodora, Dow). This beautiful plant is very rare in this region, being found only in a peaty bog at the west end, and possibly occurring in the swamps of the south part of Hingham. Its delicate, rose-colored blossoms, appearing very early, are among the most exquisite of our wild flowers.
WHITE ALDER ( Clethra alnifolia, L.). The Clethra inhabits all our swampy woods, and is well known from its upright racemes of white fragrant flowers, which are conspicuous from the latter part of July even into October.
OLEACEÆ.
PRIVET or PRIM (Ligustrum vulgare, L.). This shrub, much used for hedges, grows wild at Martin's Lane, Lincoln Street woods, Huit's Cove, Turkey Hill, and Stoddard's Neck. Its fine, fresh-looking foliage, white flowers, and black berries are familiar to all observers.
WHITE ASH (Fraxinus Americana, L.). This noble tree is common in the swampy woods, and as an ornamental tree all over town. One of the noblest specimens in this State was standing until 1869 in the field on the corner of Summer and East streets, opposite the residence of the late Deacon Gorham Lincoln. This tree was mentioned by Emerson in the " Report on the Trees and Shrubs of Massachusetts." It measured when he described it, in 1839, four feet two inches in diameter at four and a half feet from the ground. A tornado, in September, 1869, destroyed it.
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History of Hingham.
RED ASH (Fraxinus pubescens, Lam.). The Red Ash, more rare than the white, is found in swamps on Rockland Street and probably grows elsewhere in town. It may be distinguished from the other species by its pubescence and its narrower leaves and sharper keys or seed-vessels.
BLACK ASH (Fraxinus sambucifolia, Lam.). This tree, rare in Hingham, occurs in swamps in Cushing Street and south of the Old Colony Hill. It grows very tall and slender, and the buds are conspicuously black.
LAURACEAE.
SASSAFRAS (Sassafras officinale, Nees.). The pleasant aromatic Sassafras is very common. It is a fine tree, with peculiar leaves, some being regularly lobed, others formed like a mitten, with a sort of extra lobe on one side. Its green blossoms are not showy. The leaves, bark, and especially the root, are highly spicy.
SPICE-BUSH (Lindera benzoin, Meisner). This plant grows near water-courses and in low lands in various parts of the town. It is a beautiful shrub, with a handsome bark, and brilliant shining leaves which exhale a pungent, spicy odor on being crushed. The small yellow blossom is followed by the bright scarlet fruit, some- thing like a small cranberry in shape.
URTICACEA.
The WHITE ELM ( Ulmus Americana, L.) is one of our noblest trees, and grows in all kinds of soil, everywhere, but prefers. swamps. Among the finest specimens in town are the elm at Rocky Nook, a magnificent and very symmetrical tree, the noble Cushing elm on Main Street a few rods south of Broad Bridge, and the tree in front of the Gay estate at West Hingham. The variety of growth in trees standing alone on wet meadows, leading to their being called "wine-glass elms," is extremely beautiful and graceful. Some of these may be seen on the river banks at Rocky Nook.
The NETTLE TREE ( Celtis occidentalis, L.) grows on the turn- pike on the westerly slope of Baker's Hill and at Stoddard's Neck ; also near New Bridge and Cross streets. It is rare. The very singular twisted and gnarled habit of growth which some specimens exhibit is peculiar to the species. Its flower is very inconspicuous ; the fruit a small olive-green berry on a long stem.
PLATANACEÆ.
BUTTONWOOD or SYCAMORE (Platanus occidentalis, L.). This tree grows sparingly in all parts of the town. Its ragged, flaky bark, its large leaves, and the rigid character of its growth strongly mark it. Some very imposing specimens of this species.
OLD ELM, EAST STREET.
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The Trees and Shrubs of Hingham.
stand in various localities, although the injury sustained by the Buttonwoods some forty years ago, generally ascribed to the severity of a winter, has caused an apparent feebleness in these trees. For many years they bore no fruit, but of late they have matured the curious spherical balls of seed vessels, which, some inch and a half in diameter, hang from the twigs on stems three to six inches long. One of the finest trees in town stands at the junction of Main and Leavitt streets on the Lower Plain.
JUGLANDACEÆ.
The HICKORIES are well represented in Hingham.
The SHAGBARK ( Carya alba, Nutt.) is quite common, being met with in nearly all our woods. Its ragged, shaggy bark gives the species its name, while its rich, meaty nuts have been sought by the schoolboy from time immemorial. The MOCKERNUT ( Carya tomentosa, Nutt.) is a fine tree, found everywhere in the woods, as is also the PIGNUT ( Carya porcina, Nutt.), the outline of the husk of the nut of which has a not inapt resemblance to a pig's head. The BITTERNUT (Carya amara, Nutt.) is more rare. It grows at Crow Point, Planter's Hill, and Union Street, possibly elsewhere. Its yellow buds and finer foliage, as well as the thinness of the husk of the nut, distinguish it from the other hickories.
MYRICACEÆ.
BAYBERRY, WAX MYRTLE (Myrica cerifera, L.). This beautiful shrub, from two to ten feet high, is very common. The delicious aromatic odor of its crushed leaves, and in the fall the crowded masses of round, small, waxy fruit, clinging to the twigs, are its peculiarities.
SWEET FERN (Myrica asplenifolia, Endl.). This pretty, low shrub is very common on dry hillsides and in oak woods. It has long, narrow, regularly and deeply cut leaves, resembling the fronds of a fern. These are very aromatic when crushed.
CUPULIFERÆ.
The BLACK or SWEET BIRCH ( Betula lenta, L.) grows in all our Hingham woods, being rarely met with in open fields. The bark of its twigs is very aromatic. The leaves are thin and ovate, and sharply serrate. The bark is dark and ragged.
The YELLOW BIRCH (Betula lutea, Michx. f.) is rare in Hingham. It grows on the border near Cohasset and in Third Division woods. Its leaves are hardly to be distinguished from those of the black birch. The bark of the young shoots is slightly aromatic. The outer bark of the trunk is greenish-yellow, shining, and always peeling off in thin layers. The catkins, or male blossoms of all the birches are extremely showy and grace-
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History of Hingham.
ful, loaded as they are when ripe with golden pollen. Those of this species are especially conspicuous.
AMERICAN WHITE BIRCH ( Betula populifolia, Ait.). This, the common White or Little Gray birch of our woods and fields, is a slender, sometimes rather tall tree, with thin, white, peeling, outer bark and very small branches, merely twigs in fact, covering the tree with their growth. It generally grows in elumps, from old roots, and the trunk is short lived for this reason ; but upon its being cut or blown down new shoots at once succeed it. The leaves are small, shining, and triangular.
CANOE BIRCH ( Betula papyrifera, Marsh.). This tree is rare now, growing only along the shores of the bay near Crow Point, at Huit's Cove, and at Broad Cove. Its leaves are thicker and coarser than those of the other species. The outer bark peels off in large sheets, is chalky white on the outside layers, the inner ones pinkish. It was used by the Indians for their canoes. This is a large and strongly branched trec.
The SPECKLED ALDER ( Alnus incana, Willd.) grows in clumps along Weir River near Turkey Hill, at South Hingham, and else- where in wet places. It is a tall shrub with speckled bark, and serrate and deeply cut dark-green leaves.
The COMMON ALDER ( Alnus serrulata, Ait.) is present every- where on wet lands. It is a high shrub, growing in clumps. The leaves are shining, roundish, and finely serrate. The male flow. ers of the Alders are graceful catkins, generally several together, and appear very early in spring. The scales open and show at maturity beautiful golden flowers.
AMERICAN HORNBEAM ( Carpinus Caroliniana, Walt.). This tree, the leaves of which are almost exactly like those of the pre- ceding species, is common in town, preferring low, wet grounds. It is found at Rocky Nook, Turkey Hill, Lasell Street, and elsewhere.
The HOP HORNBEAM ( Ostrya Virginica, Willd.) grows at Old Colony Hill, Cushing Street, Huit's Cove, and at many other points. Its fruit resembles that of the Hop Vine. The wood is very hard and the trunk often twisted in appearance.
COMMON HAZEL ( Corylus Americana, Walt.). This plant, gen- erally growing in shrubby bunches, is found everywhere. It is one of the first of our shrubs to blossom, putting forth its delicate catkins in early spring, together with the very small and beanti- ful female flowers, scattered along the twigs like scarlet stars. Its nuts are much like those of the Filbert imported for the market.
The BEAKED HAZEL ( Corylus rostrata, Ait.) is occasionally met with in Hingham, growing in Third Division woods, on Kilby Street, and elsewhere. The leaves and manner of growth are hardly distinguishable from those of the Common Hazel. It derives its name from the curved beak or long point which pro- jects from the husk which eneloses the nut.
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The Trees and Shrubs of Hingham.
The OAK tribe is very fully represented in all the woods and fields of the township.
The WHITE OAK ( Quercus alba, L.) is a noble tree, very com- mon, some of the finest specimens being found on the easterly slopes of Old Colony Hill and thereabouts. Its light bark, the bluish-green of its round-lobed leaves, and the purplish crimson of their fall colors easily distinguish it.
The SWAMP WHITE OAK (Quercus bicolor, Willd.), scraggy branched, and with a deep rich green leaf with rounded lobes, grows everywhere in swamps and low lands.
The CHESTNUT OAK (Quercus prinus, L.). This tree, with its variety the Rock Chestnut Oak (a separate species with some botanists), is very rare, growing only in Third Division woods. It is a fine tree, although not so large or imposing in appear- ance as others of the family. Its leaves resemble those of the Chestnut, hence its name.
CHINQUAPIN OAK ( Quercus prinoides, Willd.). This little shrub, the smallest of the family, rarely reaches five feet in height. It grows on the bank at Broad Cove, and on the border of the salt meadow on Otis Street south of Broad Cove, and is also found on the sandy bank on the northerly border of that portion of the mill- pond which lies east of Water Street. Its leaves are round-lobed, very irregular, and its small acorns are beautifully striped with black.
The BEAR OAK ( Quercus illicifolia, Wang.), a shrub usually five to ten feet high, rarely becomes a small tree of fifteen feet in height. It grows east of the Old Colony Hill, on Lasell Street, in the woods near Weymouth, in the south part of Hingham, and in some other localities. It has leaves with not very prominent sharply pointed lobes terminated with bristles. The acorns are quite small and symmetrical.
The SCARLET OAK (Quercus coccinea, Wang.) grows in all parts of the town. This species probably crosses with the Black Oak, in many cases, the typical Black Oak leaf being often found upon the Scarlet, and that of the Scarlet (which is much more deeply cut and more highly polished) very often appears upon Black Oak trees. The only certain way of determining the species in many cases is to cut into the bark. The inner bark of the Scarlet is pinkish. That of the Black is bright orange or yellow. The Scarlet is not one of our largest oaks, but is an elegant tree, its delicate, shining, sharply lobed leaves, often cut almost down to the midrib, turning brilliant red or scarlet in autumn.
The BLACK or YELLOW-BARKED OAK ( Quercus tinctoria, Bartram) is a noble, sturdy tree, growing everywhere in Hingham. The crevices in its bark are black, which gives it the name. The leaves, sharp-lobed and more or less deeply cut, turn red or crim- son in the fall.
The RED OAK (Quercus rubra, L.) is quite common with us. Some of the noblest trees of this species growing in New England
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History of Hingham.
stand on East Street opposite Kilby Street. They are monuments to the owners of the estate upon which they stand, who have shown themselves capable of appreciating the magnificence of these superb monarchs of the forest. It is to be devoutly hoped that the vandalism which has destroyed so many fine trees in Hingham may never appear near the locality where these trees stand in their sturdy grandeur.
The Red Oak leaves are more regular and less deeply cut than those of the Black or Scarlet. They are sharp-lobed and turn dull- red in autumn. The acorn is very large. The inner bark is reddish.
CHESTNUT ( Castanea sativa, Mill. var. Americana). This beau- tiful tree is rare in Hingham, growing in but two or three locali- ties, at Becchwoods and elsewhere. A noble specimen formerly standing on Hersey Street was ruthlessly destroyed a few years since.
AMERICAN BEECH (Fagus ferruginea, Ait.). This fine tree grows in many localities in Hingham. Its light-colored bark, sharp-pointed, rigid leaves, dense habit of growth, and delicately beautiful pendulous blossoms easily mark it.
SALICACEÆ.
The DWARF GRAY WILLOW (Salix tristis, Ait.) may be found in Third Division woods, on the roadside. It is a small shrub, hardly two feet in height.
The PRAIRIE WILLOW (Salix humilis, Marsh.) is a shrub about ten feet high, often much less. It grows in Hingham on Derby Street and Cushing Street, very likely elsewhere.
GLAUCOUS WILLOW (Salix discolor, Muhl.). This shrub or small tree grows everywhere in low grounds. It is our most common willow. Its blossoms expand from the bud in early spring, first into what the children call "pussy willows," little gray furry bunches ; then as the season advances, they become long, graceful catkins, covered with fragrant flowers golden with pollen. There often are cones at the end of the twigs, composed of leaves abor- tively developed, and crowded closely one upon another.
SILKY WILLOW (Salix sericea, Marsh.). This is a beautiful shrub, growing on Lincoln Street and at many other localities. The leaves and young branches are covered with a silky down, which gives this species its distinctive name.
PETIOLED WILLOW (Salix petiolaris, Smith). This shrub, strongly resembling the previous species, grows on Lincoln Street, and has been found elsewhere. It is somewhat silky, but its specific name is derived from its long petioles, or leaf-stalks.
LIVID WILLOW (Salix rostrata, Richardson). A shrub or small tree growing on Old Colony Hill, Lincoln Street, on the bank of the pond at West Hingham, Lasell Street, and perhaps else- where. It has a rough, dark, thick leaf, whitish underneath.
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The Trees and Shrubs of Hingham.
SHINING WILLOW (Salix lucida, Muhl.). The beautiful shrub grows on Lincoln Street and elsewhere in town. The leaf is large, pointed, bright, and shining.
BLACK WILLOW (Salix nigra, Marsh.). This graceful tree, with its very narrow and delicate leaves, grows on Gardner Street. It is very rare in Hingham.
The MYRTLE WILLOW (Salix myrtilloides, L.) grows in Hing- ham, although very rare. It is a shrub, from one to three feet in height.
The AMERICAN ASPEN (Populus tremuloides, Michx.) grows in all the woods of Hingham. It is not a large tree. The small, bright-green leaves, light underneath, keep up a continual tremu- lous motion in the wind. The trunk is light-ash colored, and smooth in young trees.
The LARGE POPLAR ( Populus grandidentata, Michx.) is found in low lands in all parts of the town. Its leaves are deeply toothed, and the catkins are very large and coarse.
BALM-OF-GILEAD (Populus balsamifera, L. var. candicans, Gray). This tree is quite common in Hingham. Its large, very rigid and sharp buds are covered with a sticky, highly aromatic balsam, which has been used in medicine.
CONIFERÆ.
The WHITE CEDAR (Chamccyparis spheroidea, Spach.) is a beautiful and very useful tree, growing thickly in swamps near the Weymouth line and at South Hingham, in several localities. It is distinguishable from the Red Cedar by the comparative smoothness of its trunk, smaller branches, the flatness of its scaly leaves, and the angular character of its fruit.
The JUNIPER (Juniperus communis, L.) is a low, spreading shrub, growing in a dense mass, with foliage very similar to that of the Savin. It is found at West Hingham, Huit's Cove, and sparingly in a few other localities.
The RED CEDAR Or SAVIN (Juniperus Virginiana, L.) occurs everywhere, by roadsides and in hilly pastures. When growing alone, and left to itself, its perfect conical form makes it a very beautiful tree, either in its dark-green foliage, or in the fruiting season, having the green intermingled with heavy masses of blue, from the great quantities of berries which it matures.
The PITCH PINE (Pinus rigida, Miller). This rather stiff and ungraceful tree is quite common, growing at Hockley, South Hingham, and in many other places. It is a small species here, specimens not averaging thirty feet in height. Its leaves are in threes.
The WHITE PINE (Pinus strobus, L.) is very common, forming heavy forests in localities in Hingham. It is one of our noblest trees, - a specimen on Lasell Street, although now shattered by the storms of perhaps hundreds of winters, showing a majesty even in
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History of Hingham.
its decay which well befits a tree which unquestionably was ma- ture in aboriginal days. Would that the axe had spared more such ! The White Pine has its leaves in fives.
The BLACK SPRUCE (Picea nigra, Link.) This tree grows in a swamp east of High Street, and probably nowhere else wild in Hingham, although cultivated here as an ornamental tree.
The HEMLOCK SPRUCE ( Tsuga Canadensis, Carrière) grows in the woods in nearly every part of the town. It is a large, hand- some species, with feathery, delicate foliage, and is much culti- vated for ornamental purposes.
LILIACEAE.
The GREENBRIER, HORSEBRIER (Smilax rotundifolia, L.). This vine is very common. There is considerable beauty to it, the bright-green leaves always fresh and shining, and the clusters of small greenish flowers and blue-black berries in autumn quite interesting. The plant is however a disagreeable one to meet with in summer rambles, the thick sharp thorns making it a barrier almost impassable.
The CARRION FLOWER ( Smilax herbacea, L.). This is a hand- some plant, and although a vine, it often stands alone in a leaning position without support. The leaves are rounded-oblong, thinner than those of the Greenbrier, and the fruit is a very compact bunch of black berries. The greenish masses of flowers are carrion-scented.
The SMILAX GLAUCA (Walt.) strongly resembles the rotundifolia but is much more rare, being found only lately, and in the South Hingham woods.
MEASUREMENTS OF SOME NOTABLE TREES.
The GAY ELM on South Street, opposite the depot at the west end, measured in 1859 18 feet 6 inches, surpassing in circumference of trunk all other trees in town. Torn asunder some years since by a gale, the portion of the trunk remaining uninjured measured in 1889 a little over 20 feet.
The beautiful ROCKY NOOK ELM on East Street measured in 1887 15 feet 13 inches, with a spread of foliage of 90 feet. The CUSHING ELM, corner of Main and South streets, measured in 1889 15 feet. The SEYMOUR ELM, on Main Street, had a girth, in 1889, of 16 feet 3 inches. The ELM on Prospect Street, in front of Mr. Bernard Cooney's house, measured in 1889 14 feet 6 inches.
Of the noble RED OAKS on East, opposite Kilby, Street, one measured in 1887 13 feet 10 inches, and another 13 feet 93 inches. The BUTTONWOOD on the corner of Main and Leavitt streets had a girth, in 1889, of 13 feet 4} inches, with a spread of 100 feet.
A large SAVIN on land of Mr. Samuel Burr, at Martin's Lane, measured in 1890 9 feet 8 inches.
The great WHITE PINE on Lazell Street measured 14 feet in 1887.
All the above measurements of circumference of trunk were taken at 43 feet from the ground.
OLD ELM, PROSPECT STREET.
1
ANCIENT LANDMARKS.
BY EDWARD T. BOUVÉ.
IN the following description of the ancient landmarks of Hingham and Cohasset, it will be understood that the term includes both natural objects which have been adopted as bounds from the earliest settlement of the country, such as hills, rocks, waters, etc., and those artificial creations which come in time to be recognized as landmarks, as roads, bridges, mill- dams, and certain buildings.
The sources of the information from which the facts in this chapter are derived are largely traditional, although old deeds have furnished much material.
It would be improper and ungracious for the writer to omit the expres- sion of his acknowledgments to those who have aided in his researches ; and he takes great pleasure in owning his indebtedness to that interesting and valuable work, the " History of Hingham," by the late Hon. Solomon Lincoln, as well as to the "Centennial Address" and unpublished his- torical notes of the same gentleman.
At Hingham and Cohasset, on the south shore of Massachu- setts Bay, the most delightful month of the year is October. The heats and drought of summer are past, the blustering rain- storms of September have gone, leaving as their legacy a renewed greenness and freshness to the hillsides. The forests, spreading far and wide, glow with the exquisite brilliancy of the American autumn, and the ocean stretches in blue length along the shores and up into the little bays, its ripples plashing as lazily as if they would never rise into great green waves that in December will shatter themselves in foam and spray on the mighty ledges of Cohasset. The very winds seem to sleep, in their hammock of gauzy haze, that hangs, thin and graceful, over sea and shore. Nature is taking a siesta, in restful preparation for her grim struggle with winter's tempests, fierce and furious as they are on this coast.
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