The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1869-09-03
The Dark Day Of 1850.

The 18th of May, 1850, was remarkable
one in the annals Of New England; on &C
count, of the thick darkness that over.
spread the land; like d funeral pail. Il #as
day long to be remembered and talked
of by those who witnessed the strange
and at that time feafful, phenomenon
cussion Of the subject 1t tile title and
afterward, but / believe no satisfactory
conclusion was ever arrived at as to its
cause: There we're some who thought
that it must have proceeded from total
eclipse Of tie stii, that froin scrfte esuse
escaped the calculations of mathematicians
and astronomers but ,that was easily
shown TO be impossible by facts and
Hejifes.
It was then the darkest and most hope
less period of the war Of the revolution,
and, .it.'was thought by many Of. the
despondiqg and. discouraged to be signif-
Gait 6f The end III ttdt which .theIl DIP
peared them as hopeless struggle. Some
of the more sanguine insisted that as the
hour before dawn was always the darkest,
80 this strange and portentious gloom was
but the prelude to the bright dawn of
libefty and independence that was soon to
- Tie father Of the writer was then a
boy Of thirteen years, and was at; work
With his fhthef and bfQthef,. planting OF
preparing the ground. 1t was dull ks.t
morning, and as the time passed, it
gradually tbickened, and by 10 o'clock the
increasing datknesg began to be quite ap-
pafea.: fhey Fepl Il TitN ftelf work,
and as the gloom increased they observed
that he would pause once in a while and
look intently all around the horizon and
over head, but made no remark until he
directed the oldest boy to 20 to the barn
and turn. the horse and all the cattle, that
were inside out into ed open lot; aid to
close and secure every door and window.
1t appeared that he was apprehensive that
some sudden and furious gust or squall
would soon manifest ITSELF and that the
animals would be in less danger out in the
field than inside the building.
Still the darkness grew thicker and
deeper til PRESENTLY thef said they might
Dc well dtiit work for the. freseht On
reaching the house the ifidthef and sister
were about their usual duties, pale and
silent Little was said except an OCCASION
al remark or direction in low tone. No
one seemed inclined to conversation or
demonstration Of any, kind: Soon dinner
was ready, With candles lighted the ssme
as at night, but not a morsel was eaten. 4
dead silence seemed to pervade all nature,
broken only by occasional bleating of q
lamb, or the distant lowing of the kline
which wandered about restless and uneasy
The dothestic fowls seemed to be inclined
to come to the toneltsi6n that Il 1t was
not night, they could put no other con-
struction upon it, 80, after clucking over
the matter for while, they went to roost
And thus the long and dreary hours passed
away. Along in the afternoon the veil was
lifted in some degree, and at the time of
sunset it was about the, same as in an
ordinary dull and cloudy day.
The night which followed was, it is said,
as dark proportionately as was the day.
1t was the perfect " blackness of dark
ness" Not the faintest outline of any OBJ
ject could be discefned against the sky. A
light would penetrate it but little way,
and then seem to disclose but solid wall
of blackness around.-Cdp6 Ann Adrer-
faser