East Saginaw courier. (East Saginaw, Mich.) 1859-18??, 1866-04-11
From Halls Artic Researches
THE WORLD ON FIRE.

The day had been fine, with mod
crate wind from the northwest. -
When the sun went down behind the
ridge of mountains limiting the bay
a perfect calm followed, with a sky
absolutely cloudless. About four j..
~, there had been seen one solitary
and peculiar cloud hanging in the
heavens to the north, about fifteen de-
grees above the horizon. The cloud
was deep, daik blue, looking much
like the capital letter S. This at last
disappeared, and the night set in, still
beautiful and mild, with myriads of
stars shining with apparently greater
brillianey than ever.
had gone on deck several times
to look at the beautious scene, and at
nine o'clock was below in my cabin
going to bed, when the captain hailed
me with the words, "C0ne above,
Hall, at once. The world is on fire.
/ knew the meaning, and, quick as
thought, / re-dressed myself, scram-
bled over several sleeping Inuuits
close to my berth, and rushed to the
companian stairs. In another mo-
ment reached the deck, and, as the
cabin door swung open, a dazzling,
overpowering light, as if the world
was really ablaze under the agency OF
some gorgeously >colored fires, burst
upon my startled senses. How can l
describe it? Again / say, no mortal
hand can truthfully do so. Let me,
however, in feeble, broken words put
down my thoughts at the time, and
try to give some faint idea of what /
saw.
Ny first thought was, "Among the
gods there is none like unto Thee, O
Lord neither are there any works
like unto Thy works Then / tried
to picture the scenes before me- Piles
OF golden light and rainbow light,
scattered along the azure vault, ex-
tended from behind the western hori-
zon to the zenith, thence down to the
eastern, within belt of space twenty
degrees in width, where the fountains
of beams like fire threads, that shot
with the rapidity of lightning hither
and thither, upward and athwart the
great pathway indicated. No sun, no
moon, yet the heavens were a glorious
sight, flooded with light. Even or
dinary print could have been easily
read on deck.
Flooded with rivers of light. Yes,
flooded with light; and such light =
Light all but inconceivable. The
golden hues predominated but, in
rapid succession, prismaticcolors leaped
forth.
We looked, we saw, and trembled,
for, even as we gazed, the whole belt
of the aurora began to be alive with
flashes. Then each Pile or bank OF
light became myriads; some now
dropping down on the great pathway
or belt, others springing uls otheis
leaping with lightning flash fro'l, one
side, while more as quickly r .ssed in.
to the vacated sbace, son.e twisting
themselves iRto folds, entwinisg will
others like enormous serpents. ana al
these movements as quick as the ey,
could follow. IT scented as il there
was struggle with those koavenly
lights to reach and occupy the dont
above our heads. Then the whole
arch above became crowded. Down
it came nearer and nearer it ap
preached us. Sheets Of goldea nan Q
corruscating while leaping from the
auroral belt seemed as if met in theil
course by some mighty agency tha
turned them into the colors of ths
rainbow, each of the seven primar,
colors three degrees in width, sheeted
out to twenty-one degrees the pris
matte bows at right angles with the
belt.
While the auroral fires seemed tt
be descending upon us, one of ouI
number could not help exelaiming.
SHARK harkl Such display
almost as if a warfare was going Oh
among the beautious Light above-s So
palpable = so near---seens impossible
without noise"
But no noise accompanied tho Won
drous display. All was s.ence.
After we had again descended into
our cabin, so strong was the imyros-
sion Of awe left upon us, that the
captain sail TO me:
"Well, during the last eleven years
/ have spent mostly in these northern
regions, l have never seen anything
of the aurora to approach that glori-
Gus, vivid display just Witnessed
And to tell you the truth, frien Hall,
! do not care to SEQ the like ever again.