The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1868-02-23


1 OF Inem, the variation in the deflector com
3 pared with that given in the tablets will
: detect and show the extent of aduitaration
EFFECT OF DARKNESS AND SILENCE
, Dr. Rails Smith says he is &c confident, tina,
! s sig sense OF hearing, as well as that Of
mammoth cave.n Professors A1ass; .
and Wyman have demonstrated that The
nsnes III the mammoth cave, of which there
are several species, are.au blind; that thay
an nave documentary orbits, developed in
some species more than in others INT NJ
the same time all have large, well deyei-
opea auditory organs, even larger in pro-
portion than ordinary fish. See SilIi,nnn,s
american Journal, for March, 1854.
froI. Snlman visited the cave in 1850.
ana states that the cave rat possesses, when
ntst captured, very imperfect, If any,
| sense OF vision, which, however, appears to
improve when kept long in the light but
tnls same rat Is extremely shy; and not
W1thstanding the cave is full Of Innumera-
| pie tracks, they are seldom seen, as they
nee When hearing the approach of man.
Dr.. Smith asserts that these animals are
deaf; because there is nothing to be heard.
forgetting that they make sounds by their
own movements, and produce articulats
sounds. 1t would be moro probable that
very accute hearing in these animals com
pensates for the loss of sight, as is the case
with the blind in general.
THE AvALANCHE.--Therea are three kinds
OF avalanches. The first is the drift. or
Stau0t0csnen, composed of the loose snow
which has accumulated in the upper regions
ana Is put In motion by a strong wind, and
increases IN volume as it descends. The
damage done by these falls is not very great.
since the snow is loose and may be removed
from the places where it accumulates: but
the compression OF the air sometimes chOkes
men and cattle, and~has been known to
overturn houses by its force. The rolling
10 %x.,, l.
after thaw, when the clammy grains of
snow begin to move and form into BIZ
which grows as it rolls downward. UNI
forms destructive mass, carrying
fore it; silently, swiftly, and surely
one or these which, i'll 1749, invo
whole village of Eueras, in the
covered it i'll, and moved it-fro
withOuta sound loud enough to ~
inhabitants, some of whom won, -
delayed the morning light, and one II,
OF whom were dug out. Sixty still
saved by the air that was in the int,
In 1906, in Val Calanca a forest was
from 11! one side of the valley to the 9th,
rolling avalanche, and Il pine tree
placed on the roof of the parsonage by
Sliding -avalanches are awfn
enough; but they are formed onlowe
slopes by the gradual thawing of the founda
tons and the slipping en- n,asse of the ,nnc-
accumulation OF frozen snow. They slid,
swiftly downward, carrying everything h
fore them. Sometimes, however, they co
70 steep place, topple over, begin to
md become great ball-a rolling ava
anche, in tact-and eventually NAV meet
With hard rock some impregnable OBJ,
tacle, and be dashed to pieces, SO as to re-
emble drift: Thus the traveller is never
ute certain in, what form the avalanch
nay come upon him, or whether a whispc
football, the cracking of a drivers VII.
nay notm such a conclusion of the Goh
tmosphere as to bring the enemy upon lin
nawares. r. 1--