The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1881-09-29
THE DARK DAY OF 1881.

\SeptemOeF ~ the same atmospheric
phenomena which distinguished the
famous Dark Day of 1880; in lesser
degree its characteristics were repeated,
and over very neatly the same extent
of country. In this city the day began
with slow gathering of fog from all
the water-cOurses in the early hours,
the thin clouds that covered the sky at
midnight seemed TO crowd to yether and
descend upon the earth, and by sunrise
the atmosphere was dense with vapor,
which limited vision to very short dis
tances. and made those distances illu-
sorry: and as the sun rose invisibly be-
hind, the vapors became thick, brassv
canopy through which a strange yellow
light pervaded the air and produced the
most peculiar effects ON the surface of
the earth. This color and darkness
lasted until about three o'clock in the
afternoon. once in a while tightening,
and then again deepening. so that dur
ing large part OF the time nothing
could be done conveniently indoors
without artificial light. The unusual
complexion of the air wearied and
panied the eyes. The grass assumed
singular blush brightness, as if every
blade were tipped with light. Yellow
blossoms turned pale and gray, row
of suntowers looking CHASTITY; orange
nasturtiums lightened; pink roses
famed. lilac-hued phlox grew pink, and
blue flowers were transformed into red.
Luxuriant neutrality-suspicious. that had
been blossoming in deep blue during
the season now were dressed in splendid
magenta; rich blue clematis donned
;,h
tians were crimson in the fields. There
was a singular luminousness on every
fence and roof-ridge. and the trees
seemed ready to lily into fire. The light
was mysterious,y devoid of refraction
One sitting with his back to window
could not read the newspaper if his
shadow fell upon it-he was obliged to
turn the paper aside to the light. Gas
was lighted all over the city. and it
burned with sparkling pallor, like the
electric light. The electric lights them
selves burned blue, and were perfectly
useless, giving more unearthly look to
everything around. The darkness was
not at all like that of night, nor were
animals affected by it to any remarka-
BILE extent. The birds kept still, it is
true, the pigeons roosting on ridge
poles instead of flying about, but gen
orally the chickens were abroad. A
singular uncertainty Of distance pre-
vailed and commonly the distances
seemed shorter than reality. When in
the afternoon the sun began to be visi-
bic through the strange mists, it was
like pink ball amidst yellow cushions
just the color of one of those mysteri
Gus balls of rouge which we see at the
drug stores and which no woman ever
buys. 1t was not till between five and
six clock that the sun had sufficiently
dissipated the mists to resume its usrssl
clear gold, and the earth returned to its
everyday aspect; the grass resigning it.
unnatural brilliancy and the purple dali
sizes no longer fa;nting into pink. The
temperature throughout the day was
very close and oppressive, and the ply
steal effect was one of heaviness and
depression.
What was observed here was the ex-
per:ence OF all New England. so far as
heard from, of Albany and New York
City, and also in Central and Northern
New York. We have dispatches and
letters from Portland, Me-. from Bos-
ton, Providence, Norwich, New Haven.
New York. Utica and all over Southern
Vermont, Connecticut and Western
Massachusetts,. Schools were dis
missed in various places. as. indeed,
study was perforce suspended in those
which kept up their sessions; and many
factories also let out their hands when
their facilities for lighting were INSULT
cient. The Bachelor Shoe Factory
at North Brookield was one of them,
and the Hartford Carpet Company at
Thompsonville-where it is said the
operatives were afraid the final trump
was going to sound. II there was any
danger of this it. was a very proper
thing to do: for no one could possibly
hear the trump while the mills were
running There were traces of super
stit!On in various quarters. Naturally
many associated the strange darkness
with the removal of President Garfield,
and some felt as if it signied his death.
Others thought of the end of the world.
as so many did on the celebrated dark
dav of 1Ol years ago.
That Ozark Day. par esninence was
May l9, 1880, when, after several DAYS
of close, hot weather. characterized bv
a thick, smoky atmosphere, between
ten and eleven o clock in the forenoon
the skies thickened, and fearful dark
ness set in which lasted until the fol-
lowing midnight, or from twelve to
all New England, extending west as
far as ALBANY, southwark along the
coast, and to the east and north as far
as white settlements extended. Birds
stopped singing, and fowls went to
roost, the cocks crowed at midday as
if it. were midnight, animals showed
terror, and the superstitious howled
Then it was that Abraham Davenport,
in the Connecticut Legislature, said
that he proposed to be found at his duty
If the day Of Judgment did come, and
moved that candles be brought in.
Prof. Williams, of Harvard College,
made record that day of q steady fall
in the barometer, and noted many of
the phenomena of color we have de-
scribed Is occurring yesterday. The dark.
ness of the following night was tremen-
d0us, SO that there was literally NO
light. and though the full moon rose.
early in the evening. the heavens and
the earth were indistinguishable. The
explanation which has received most
credence since then is that the peculiar
state OF the atmosphere was due to the
coincidence of heavy clouds of smoke
from forest fires with an extraordinary
moisture, which combined to shut out
al but the yellow light. This explana-
ton applies very we'll also to the dark
day Of October, 1916. when similar,
though less severe and extensive dark
ness, was known In New England, and
another day of the sort which was sx-