The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1869-09-15

tEoSc Etai dllu III y5teFlOub STRUCTURES tHc!I
own humble novels. In this meagre and
skeleton outline of the life and discoveries
OF Humboldt, which | have collected and
arranged from these sources, I can only
Gather here an important fact and there an
eloquent and suggestive sentence with which
to stimulate the curiosity Of my hearers to
the pcrusal of ITumboldt's great works, as
well es OF those volumiIous biographies In
which the most eminent talent of two con-
tinents has laborcd to do him honor.
1t is Justly said by Professor klencke,
the most distinguished of the many biogra-
pliers of Humboldt, that his investigating
mind found rich food for its inquiries in
every new object upon which his eye rested.
What common traveller would have en-
loved merely with the senses, or overlooked
as solitary object, or admired as a strange
phenomenon, or collected rs curiosity,
of great whole which his mental eye COM
pretended. The material pleasure of a
surprisingly beautiful prospect into new
country was with him joined to a mental
activity of scientific research.'
When first through the mists of early
dawn Humboldt bchcld the celebrated
peaks of Teneriife, upon his suggestive
mind great questions forced themselves, to
whose solution he devoted his whole life.
They were: "Was it the force of fire or of
water which raised these volcanic heights,
lcvellcd the plains, and placed boundaries to
land and water? What are volcanoes, what
is geology, and what the hidden forces of
The earth? How did they origi
nate, and how do they act ? Thus
the volcano Of Teneriffe was for Hum
boldt a key to many of the mysteries Of
universal life. The ancient fires of the
Volcano which he ascended had long since
been cxtinCushed, but its traces seemed to
him no the gigantic letters in explanation
IF the tremendous element which once per-
yadcd the earth, which broke through the
carth's surface, which buried men, animals,
plants, and towns, and which still propa-
ratcs its veins in the depths, to shake the
earth here and there, or to explode with
lame and glowing lava, through It's safety
Yalvcs, The volcanic craters.' 1t was this
knowledge which made him so gloomily
Drophetic of the fate which awaited one Of
| the most prosperous and beautiful Of the
cities of South America. He visited Ca
racas, then the seat Of the Supreme Court,
under whose jurisdiction more than 10000
people lived, and were as happy and as
| :hourhtlcss of the terrible future as were
| hc doomed citizens of Pompcii and Hercu-
laneum. 70 Humboldt this was Il solemn
| md dismal town, for he was haunted by q
| sorcboding of the terrible viBitations which
waited ii from the volcanic appearance Of
| The soil and there is nothing more sad Or
! IL l. tl,o
count lie gives OF the terrific earthquake
which, in 1912, swallowed up the beautiful
and ill-fatcd city Of Caracas, when of the
| 10000 inhabitants who pcrished 5000
we're buried beneath q ruined church while
zccking tie protection of their God.
In reading the fascinating pages Of his
- Kosmos" and " Views of Nature VIC
rc everywhere startled at the fertility Of
intellect, wonderful suggestiveness, and
marvcllously varied attainments, Of this
srcat man. Everything was made by
Humboldt tributary to science. The pecu-
lar blUcncGs Of the tropical sky led to in
crcsting researches and experiments and
wandering over soil rich in springs, me-
:als, and minerals, and beneath trees O;
Gigantic size, covered by enormous pGra-
| SitiC IlHHis. h% cNcs hIilIS l'ioSNCutSI hlN'
zeal his geological, meteorological, and bo-
| .anical, studies. " In these interior districts
| ot South America" hc writes. "onc
almost aCcustom8 oneself to consider man
rs something unimportaut in the order o.
nature. The earth is covered with gigan-
tic plants, whc3c free growth is checked by
10 obstacle. An unreasonable layer OF
black earth tcstiiies the uninterrupted
action Of organic forces. Crocodiles and
boas are the lords Of streams, and the
woods arc the settled ard undisputcd inhc-
.itance Of fierce wild beasts. Such scene
Of animated nature: in which man is no.
! thirg, has something strange and dcprcss-
| ;ng in It's effects. 1t is difficult to accustom
oneself to it-on the ocean, and in the
sandy deserts of Africa although there
shcrc nothing exists which can remind us
Of our fields, woods, and rivers, the i'm
| mcnsc deserts we traverse seem strange
But here, in fertile, ever green, beautiful
| country, we seek in vain for traces of hui
man existence, and seem to be transported
70 g totally different world"
The literature of modern science and
civilization contains nothing comparable in
| force, grandeur of expression and elo-
luencc, to many OF Humboldts dcScrip-
lions and illustrations OF travel and Of ma
turc. can recall nothing in the inspired
description o. the horrible in Dantc'S In
rerno" more fearful than the picture which
| Humboldt draws of the effects Of the
drought in the vast, treclcss plains Of South
America and in reading it we recall oul
early recollections of the painting of tho
Wreck of the Mcdusa," and of DorG'S
hidcous conception Of the frozen lake, be-
meath whose surface are seen the faces Of
The damned. In the Kosmos." that splen
did cpitt.ne Of Humbold't long scientific
life, there arc portions which, in eloquencC
and power, equal the most famous passage:
in the writings of Goethe and Schiller, those
'Titans of German literature, who, by com
mon consent, belong to the immortal anC
radiant companionship of Milton and Shak
spcare. But time will not permit me tt
adorn this humble tribute with even a few
Of the brightest Of these gems from tht
writings Of Humboldt.
The exceedingly graphic and interesting
sketch which your distinguished country
man (AIr. Peple) has given of the results
Of Humboldt's explorations in South Amc'
RIGA render it unnecessary that | should
dwell upon them at much greater length
If the discovery of that continent was due
70 the genius OF Columbus, it was Humboldt
who made its almost unknown interior, it
lofty mountains, its vast plains, it's mighty
rivers, its terrific volcanic peaks, and it
wondrous animal, mineral, and vegetable
wealth, familiar TO the whole civilized
world. 1t was lie who accurately mapped
out its provinces, analyzed its soils, ex'
plored the various sources OF its great
rivers, measured the heights of its loftics
mountains, studied the manners Of its abo-
riginal tribes, and the habits and instincts
of its vast animal kingdom.
For years he wandered through provinces