Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1864-06-08
On EARTHQUAKES.

other places were much desolated, Garth
quakes were quite rare. More recently
they have been frequent, and as one wri-
ter says, of almost daily occurrence, ex-
tending over nearly the whole earth's sur
face. The British Association have re-
solved to make the subject one for scienti-
fic study: and have established COM
mittee on Volcanoes and Earthquakes,
whose laboys will be full of interest to all
sections which are in the way of being
visited by these elemental agents.
AS an exchange paper says, it might be
well for some persons in San Francisco,
who are fond of scientific research in this
connection, to get up sub-coTesponding
association, which should note the Phe-
nomena occurring on this coast, transmit
the same to the British Society, and seek
a return of like information, A writer IN
the New York Commercial Adrertiser has
the following on the general subject mat
ter:
"Of the great earthquake which, on
the Sd of June last, in less than 30 seconds
threw down two-thirds of large and
populous city, we have unfortunately no
precise and scientific information. The
suddennes of the shock is its best estab-
lished feature, and this contrasts it more
strikingly with the earthquake Of last
year at Rhodes, which began March 18th,
and did not fairly end till June 3Oth. In
the interval of 100 days the inhabitants
were almost daily terrified by a new
shock. On the 23d of April the paroxysm
Of the earthquake occurred, and shock
about 40 seconds in duration threw down
every house but one in the village of Mes
seri, and buried two-thirds of the popu-
lation under the ruins. The next day
new shock occurred, very slightin Rhodes
but quite severe on the coast of fAnatolia.
In this case, too, we lack precise observa-
tons, though the French Nice-Consel has
testified to one very interesting fact, that
the level of the streams on the island was
higher than usual before this season Of
earthquakes set in, and subsidized after its
termination. This suggests movement
analogous to thatwhich has just thrown up
between Malta and Sicily, an island, called
by the English who have hurried to take
possession of it, Graham's Island. This is
simply vast volcanic cone OF nearly
mile in circumference. The crater, still
filed with sea water, resembles vast
boiling cauldron. Torrents of vapor and
sulphurous smoke pour from the crater,
while the sea is marked by hot and
blackish current issuing from some rltt
in its sides beneath the surface of the
waters. This island has appeared and
disappeared several times before. AS the
earthquakes began to subside in Rhodes,
their centre of explosion was plainly dis
cerned to be in motion from west to east.
The last shock was felt June Both, and
the shock of that day was felt as far as the
island of Cos, in the direction Of Sicily.
Nine days afterwards new crater opened
in Mt. Etna, above the unhappy city OF
Catania, and volcanic eruption followed.
Now Ema stands above the great volcanic
fissure which trayerses the Mediterranean
from Turin to France, Auyergne, Eng
land and the Northern Ocean to Mount
Hecla. About a month after the eruption
of Etna violent shock was felt at Turin.
About a month later again the inhabitants
about Mont Core, in Auvergne, the grand
est volcanic peak of France, were started
from their homes by repeated though not
very violent shocks of an earthquake dur
ing two successive days. Eighteen days
nffer this again the force revealed itself in
England. On the nights of the 5th and
9Th of October, all England sprang from
its couch in alarm unfelt before since the
accession of Queen Victoria. Britain has
had her share of earthquakes, her annals
ostobI;sb;pg 105 authenticated cases, of
which more than one-half, 1877, were con-
fnnd 70 Scotland. During the earth
Quake of 1853. an astronomer at Green
wich, who was studying the motions of n
star. was astonished by sudden and in
expiicablc movement on its part. The
star did not move suddenly and inexplica-
bly: il was simply the jar of the instru-
mani bv shock 50 slight MS not 10 be di-
rpctlv nerceptible.
Communication made to the Institute
of Franco bv Alix. after a careful study of
these phenomena of 1868. predict the ap-
nroach of n violent volcanic eruption in
Western Europe. from Vesuvius to Hecla.
II will be curious to watch the fulfllment
mr. disappointment of this prediction but
its verifcation would hardly add to the
Importance of the light which has been al
ready thrown upon the regular and order
" production of the great assures o. the
earth. Elei De Beaumont has undertaken
to proye that these assures follow certain
arcs of great circle, which can be rigor-
ously determined by geometric co.ordin-
ates. Possibly the correlation of the Plu-
toniun shocks would furnish us with the
means of verifying the exactitude OF the
numerical values given by De beaumont
for II principal grand circles OF the PEN
tagonal network, and 9S auxiliary circles.
As matter of immediate material interest
the study of the earthquakes and of the
assures of the globe is much more than
simply curious. The position of the met
alliferous "leads" has necessarily most
cal distribution of the terrestrial envelop.
Whether the metallic salts were brought
down by the waters, or whether the met
ais were forced along in a state of fusion,
is matter of slight consequence, for in