Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1869-09-12
WONDERFUL PHENOMENON.
The Red Lights In the IEeaveus-San
Francisco Amazed.

The ed Lights In the IEeaveus-San
Francisco Amazed.
From the Memphis Appeal. Sept. 7.
| Our cousins of San Francisco
have the advantage of those of us
who live in the interior, in their OPP
| portunity to look out daily to the
westward on the waters of the
great "Big Pond" On the 10th of
August, at about z o'clock in the
evening, they commenced observing
what even to them was a new and
singular phenomenon in the sky.
The San Francisco Times gives the
following description:
"The sun had set a full hour, and
already the shades of night had be-
gun to gather over the city, when a
warm glow stole over the heavens,
rapidly deepening to that rosy hue
which usually accompanies sunset
in clear weather. So strong and
ruddy was this strange light that
hundreds of persons supposed a
great fire had broken out somer
where. Those who live on the
hills were startled by the crimson
glow reflected from the walls of
those houses which faced the
West, and many FASTENED into
the streets to discover the where
abouts of what they imagined to be
an extensive confagration. The
light filled space in the heavens of
about forty-five degrees from the
horizon. 1t was of a warmer hue
than that usual in auroral phenom-
ena, and, unlike the latter, was per-
fectly steady and continuous. For
the space of an hour it continued to
glow redly, and to light up the
walls of the houses as with the re-
Election of a phantom sunset. Those
who observed the phenomenon
carefully noticed that a bank of
vapor, not clearly defined as mass
of clouds, but evidently humid and
heavy, hung high in the atmos-
phere above the ocean, and proba-
bly, served as a reflector and dis
tributor of the rays of the sun, it
self far below the horizon at the
time.
"The fact that similar appear
ances have been noticed at Marys-
vile and Sacramento during the
past forty-eight hours, indicates the
existence of an abnormal condition
in the atmosphere. How that con-
dition is caused we do not pretend
to say, but there can be little doubt
that this strange appearance was
produced by reflection of the suns
rays upon a bank of vapor, which
RENTED it 70 the earth again, after
the sun had disappeared below the
level of the horizon"
This phenomenon, so wonderful
and astonishing, was witnessed a
many other points on our Pacific
coast and in the interior, this side |
side Of the Sierra Nevada. Some
years ago q similar phenomenon
w do MllHSBSGu III llO 1uulin III SuIS |
pelago from the decks of the United
States supply ship Lexington. On
that occasion everything on board
the ship, the men and officers in
cluded, assumed blood-red hue
the sea foamed with a perceptible
ripple as, all blood-red, it passed
the vessel which. barely moving at
the time, was shortly distanced by
the froth. 1t was noticed shortly
after that the frightful phenomenon,
before which the stoutest heart
On deck quailed, preceded squall
of most destructive character. Not
one of the officers explained, and
none of the men could explain
phenomenon that did not in any
way attach to the going down Of the
sun, as that event occurred some
hours after.