The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1880-03-03
SODOM AND GOMORRAH.
Were They Destroyed by MeteOric Show
er9-PrOfeasOr PrOctOr'a Theory.

Were They Destroyed by n MeteOric show
er9-PrOfessOr PrOctOr'a Theory.
Mr.. Proctor writes from lion: "The
idea that Sodom and Gomorrah may
have been destroyed by meteoric down
fall is not altogether a new one. l ad-
vanced it, but not very seriously, sew
eral years ago in the English Mechanic,
and it was taken up quite seriously by
an ingenious, though rather fiery, cor
respondent of the journal, Mr.. E. L.
Garbett, the well-known architect. He
took up the theory precisely in the form
in which ] had, half jestingly, sug-
gested it-that the meteor system which
produced the destruction of the cities of
the plain was the so-called November
system. which at that remote date would
have been a September system. It can
be shown that Tempe's comet, in whose
track the November meteors travel,
must have passed very near indeed to
the earth, at about the time which
tradition assigns to the destruction of
Sodom and GOmorrah. Moreover, there
can be little doubt that the comets
meteor-train was then far more compact
than it is at present. Again, it is GER
tain that among the meteOrs of the
November system are many which Tar
exceed in size those seen during the dis
play of Nov. 1914, 1866 for, during the
disp ay of Nov, 1914, 1888, some of the
falling stars were bright enough to cause
distinct shadows to be thrown. Sup
posing the meteOrs forming the comet
itself, or very near to the comet, to be
larger yet, they would probably be able
to break their way through the air as
the larger meteOrites do, and if strewn
with propOrtionate density, so as to fall
in the form of a compact stream, they
would descend as a very destructive
shower upon whatever part of the
earth's surface happened to be most
fully exposed to them. Now it happens,
strangely enough, that at the time men,
toned in the verse you quote The sun
was risen upon the earth when Lot en-
tered into ZOar; then the Lord rained
upon SOdom and GOmOrrah birthstone
and fire from the Lord out of heaven
the destroyed cities lay almost centrally
turned toward the radiant of the
November meteors. If ever a special
and not very large district of the earth
could be so rained upon by meteors
that towns in it could be destroyed, the
catastrophe would unquestiOnabIy be at
tended by just such circumstances as
these-that is, the region would be as
fully as possible exposed to the hail of
meteors, and this hail woald be as heavy
as possible, which would require that
either the comet itself or a part of its
meteor-train very close to the comet
should be the source of the meteOric hail.
In the case supposed, the velocity you
have mentioned would be far exceeded;
for not only does the earth herself speed
along around the sun at the rate of 100
miles per minute, or more than eighteen
miles per second, but the November
meteOrs travel with a greater velocity
about twenty-foUr miles per second
meeting her almost full tilt, so that we
have for the velocity with which the
meteors rush through the air something
like forty miles per second. Add to this
that when the meteOrs of November
1914, 1866, were examined with the
spectrOscOpe, the element which was
found to be most largely present was
sodium, the chief component of our COM
mon salt, whence may be derived a
naturalized' explanation of the fate of
Lots wife. Those who take an interest
in this theory of the destruction of
SOdOm and Gomorrah might possibly
to find some evidence of heavy
meteoric downfall in that part of the
earth. The search would be as likely
to be rewarded with success as that
which my esteemed friend, the Abbe
MoignO, has suggested should be made
for the chariots, ETC., of the destroyed
army of Pharoah."