Eureka daily sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1871-1887, 1879-03-14
COMING

The Worcester Spy has decided, after
examing all the available evidence in the
case, that the approaching perihelion of
1880 won't be any 'great shakes" after
all; that the astronomers are a set OF croak-
ers, creating unnecessary alarm, and CIV
ing no substantial reasons for their belief;
and advises its readers to attend to their
business as usual-be as industrious, hon
| est, benevolent as their circumstances will
aIlow-and loave the solar system, with its
inexplicable variations to the supervision
of the Creator OF all worlds and systems OF
worlds. This is good advice, no matter
| what the result Of astronomical specula-
| tons may be. II We must fight p~estilence,
and plague, and famine, and earthquake,
and drought, and deluge, and insufferable
heat, and uncomfortable cold, and all the
other calamities ciphered out by DIR.
Knapp as the accompaniment Of the next
Presidential campaign, let us face them
| like men and women, with our sleeves rolled
| up and ready for the conflict, not as cow
ards and bathrooms, shivering on our
knees. But it is well to be as thoroughly
| advised as possible as to what may happen.
About the latter part Of 1850 there VIII
| occur a conjunction OF four OF the largest
| planets in the solar system-Jupiter,
| Uranus, Saturn and Neptune. A peri
helion Of these planets has not before
occurred within the past two thousand
years, and professional men, who have
given much time m study to the subject,
inform us that the atmospheric disturb
ances and changes Of climate will be such
-. d. IL -..k1r ~. An t1se narfh r0rrnty
endurable. DR.. Knapp says that New
Years day, 1881, will dawn upon one vast
charnel house, and millions of the dead
will remain unburied. A physician astron-
omer in Pueblo, Mexico, stoutly aihrms
that not more than one-fifth the present
population of the earth will outride the
perihelia. This is a gloomy prospect Tor
us all in the immediate future, but even II
it be true, there is no alternative, and no
possible advantage can be gained by whin-
ing about it. We have but a very dreamy,
indefinite knowledge of the conditions
through which the human family have
waded in the remote past, but considering
the almost universal profigaey and god
less-fearing Of what is called good socl-
ety. around the whole earth to-day, we
can't help the occasional conviction thai
the denizens Of this planet richly merit,
and may perhaps receive, a terrible castiga-
ton. If we could just know how and why
the great continent of Atlantis was wal
lowed up by the waters Of the deep, the
approaching perihelia, and its possible
consequences, might be more keenly appre-
ciated. You say "Atlantis is q mere
myth" Not so, my friend. In the gen.
eral acceptation Of that term there is no
such thing as a myth. The human brain
never coined one; it is an utter impossi-
bility to do so. There was a great CONT
nent called Atlantis, and during some un-
usual position, condition, or relation of
this earth to its sister planets it was sub
merged with all its wealth of cities, gov
ernmets, armies and commerce.; and for
aught we know of the history of past time,
it may have been the hundredth repetition
of similar catastrophes.
Jupiter ~revolves round the sun once in
IL years; Saturn, once in 80 years; Uranus,
once in As yevrs, and Neptune. once in l65
years. There are frequent coincident peri
helia of two Of these planets, and twice
within the Christian era of three of them,
but of all four there is account in written
history Of only M UGH occurrence.