New-York tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1841-1842, 1842-03-23
IrcTTRg OK MAGNETISM,
81 p1cHARD ADAMS LOCKE.
fRepor,ed for TIE Tribune.l Concluded J


as rh;r ascent i the angle of the ike OF nova
alto, with the car,f's axis, and Is probably the
can,e .l il. The rate OF their ascent IS exactly
that OF the ascent, OF the earth axis. o: The d''n,7
mutton of the obliqttiiy of the echptic 80 wei
known To astronomers, although they DO hot ses
know that the one the cause OF INC other ms,
then, brings Us TO The .dsratlon o. tiid' - i
periodical mutation in the position OF tli; caFt
axis toward the sun which has occa5ioned the
mos, ,nonen,o, changes that; haze occurred IN Inc
is,or o our Dlanct and IL the condition OF It's IN
habi,auts and productions through y;ist cEcics OF
7irnc. This revolution OF the earth axis. though
well known to the ancients and the great theme
of their poets and pinG,ophers--iiic subject OF
,lcir sacred my tere-cpicted IN the spiral CIR
Giles OF sler temples. and taught to the initiated IN
Their noble orrerrs and zodacs-has been lost TO
modern science O., at lcast.siucc the wholly gra-
,uitcus hypoti!e.is Of l.ap!ace concerning me tn-
lure pcr,uroing ilgcnce OF the planets, has been
limited to an oscila,oIy melton, upward and down
ward of between tyo and three degrees. Granting
him his PREMISE. the calculations Of Laplace
might be conclusive, but d;.pulng his tirstassump-
non, tcy would i;l! to the ground, and the united
testimony Of antiquity aud geology would be estab
lishel The mathematical evidence which Knight
offer in coordination, is -adapted to popular
lecture which caiicinbrace only general yieys and
arguments; bu; | hesitate not TO say, that that
higher order OF proof, derived from the forces Of
the sun appears be clear, conclusive, and
unan- wer;bc ;lad must eventually supcrccdc the
modern hypothesis. All the observations of
The obliqnity OF the ccliptic that haze reach
ed H. from ancicn, times-and they extend
FAR beyond the Christian era-show the earth'>
axis to be ascending. g Ths Oldest recorded OBJ
serva,ion Of the ccliptic says Dr.. Sherwood.
"tfat has reached Us, is that given to Alexander
by Bcrosus the astronomer OF Babylon. who told
him, and the philosophers who accompanied him
on his expedition TO Babylon that it was then
0,0o0 year, since the carths axis in the
plane If the ccliptic, and the obliqui,y 90o and
he showed them astronomical observations cx-
teading back that time, which, with many
Thousand vcrY ancient documents and monuments,
said TO have been destroyed in the crusadcS OF
the Therapeutic. The next Oldest recorded Oh
servation is thai of the Chinese about which there
is no dispute, when the obliquity was pa" and
which carries us back to 3,4j6 years, since which
time thc magnetic poles have made five entire
volutione round the earth, and have advanced
$50 II II into the sixth, and must consequent
Is, have advanced in spiral manner. and nj
angle with the parallels of the latitndcS. The
next observation is that of Pythcas $50 wears be-
fore Christ, who found 23o 3d. and as it is now
we'll known to be about %" So, The arctic and
antarctic circles must have advanced more than
half a degree since the time OF this observations.
Different, maticmatcians have calculated the rate
of thu decrease of the obquty of the ccliptic from
sou to 50" in !; century, but have adopted the
secular or mean rate. used by the ancicnts, Of
SO" I5 which gives an annual rate OF :33''' 45''",
and there are good reasons for believing these to
be the true mean rates.
will now refer YOU TO the diagram in which
the different positions of the Earth's axis toward
the Sun and in sixteen periods OF $4,000 years
each, are exhibited. This diagram was projected
upon the pattern OF very ancient zodiac OF six
teen divisions which still exists. In the lowest
and nppermost circles around the larger one, you
will perceive the axs i'll TIE plane of the ecliptc
with pole presented toward the Sun, the North
pole being toward the Sun in the one and the South
pole in the other--the hemlsphercs being thus re-
versed in L. l52,O00 years or in hall OF the entire
revolution Of 1904 900 years to the same position
again. In this situation of the Earth the magnet
ic poles, which are ever perpendicular TO the plane
of the ecliptc (thc Earth moving under them, in
reality, and parallel TO the axis of the Sun, were
in the equator; and the Sun Instead of passing
round the equator, moved annually upon the me-
ridan of the axis of rotation, or from one psc OF
that axis to the other So that the days and nights
were then u. leAg us the seasons, being each six
months one side Of the earth being in darkness
and frost, and the other in fierce sunshine ;,ltcr
a,ely leave your imagnations to depict the
horrors of such age, and OF the dreadful floods
and conmotions of the elements that prevailed
j, was indeed the g age of horrors, or the " iron
age, sotrcquen,ly referred Is by ancient poets
and philosophers which is also often alluded TO in
the Scriptures and Of which the Earth still rc,aixs
the appalling scars, and from which we have grad
ually emerged. In that position Of the Globe the
Sun rapidly PASSED over 80 degrees of latitude
in the time that itnow passes AZ" So Or from tro-
pic to lropic for the poles Il the Earth ,cere then
the tropics. \ modern Geslogist, (Prot. Agassis
of Neuclatel. has lately presented to the public
most Interesting and impressive view of the awful
condition Of our World in this period, derived
from munv wears study Of the Geology of the
Aps and other Countries and II portion OF ii is
published i'll the last number ct the Eclectic Re
view Gin this cily,) which solicit your particu-
lar attention. His description exactly accords
with what must necessarily have existed fro,u TINS
position of the axis and whic Ii could not, witLou,
il special nrucc for the purpose, have arisen
from any other cause. and it is not merely
unphilosophcal but tunalical to resort to miracle
for the explanation of phenomena for which we
have natural causes. He states Know must
have been the case, that the waters must then have
prevailed over the greater part OF the Garth leaving
helcsion Of the equator the most exempt, and been
kept cxccpt iii that resion) perPctuay frozen,
except such portion of the ice would have been
melted into rushing, frigh,ful floods in the rapid
course Of the sun. The effects of the falling ice
hergs upon the surface of the rocks and the trans
portadon OF immense of the latter to remote
places, he has traced from obscrvation and his dis
coverics viii have great weight restoring the
clcnt science and in Introducing far more rational
aud liberal theory of Geology tkan is now adopted.
1t Will be unnecessary resort the marvel
Gus and difficult theory of the rise and depression
OF whole Continents, by the action Of the Internal