Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1882-04-18
AURORA BOREALIS.
The Brilliant Display of Heavenly Ply
rOtechnies Witnessed by Belated
MemphiaDs Sunday Night.
The Phenomenon at Other POints-TeIe-
graphic Communication Interrupted
Strange Effects Produced.

About 1870 O'Clock on Sunday night >
display % aurora boreali-, or northern ights
called in some parts Of England 'morris''
or mt rry "daneers" appeared in the north
ern SKY, such az is very rare in this latitude,
especially at this advanced date in April.
There was no moon, gray-bfle sky showed
that the atmosphere was not free from yapor,
but stars from the third magnitude MP were
| perfectly visible outside the aurorsl display.
At 6rst the principal sight lay from north
| eastwardly. About the horizon the sky was
illumined with an even, mild white light,
rounded into vast arch. Above the outline
oil this curve spread out like a fan slightly
| opened, shafts and beams OF light
rising perpendicul arly. Here and there
one of the spectral shafts would fade
into mere background of pale light,
| like the glimmering of early dawn,
in another place another beam would be-
come more vivid, as If instinct with myste-
! rious life, until the white glory gIowed in a
| corruscation OF indescribable beauty. Slowly
the aurora kept edging more into the west,
until east of north not much remained ex-
cept beams of moderate brightness amid the
dawn-like glimmering of the sky, and here
and there pyramidal forms of light stood out
from the sky. As the shafts sprung more
and more from the west of north the scene
assumed new glory. A flush of tender
pink glanced upon the vivid cleaning. The
beams shot up with renewed splendor, fad
ing and subsiding, while others flashed into
keener energy and glowed with an intense
brightness, whose pale polish became more
and more irridiscent with the flush of rosy |
color. Deeper and deeper grew tie hue uu- |
til the white glowing beams of light were |
sufused, especially at the parts nearer the |
zenith, with deep rose tinge that quenched |
something of the brightness, but that added |
strange, weird charm to the spectacle. So
the scene continued for some time, supernal |
in beauty, but restless, shifting and changing. |
as if caprice and within were directing The |
waxing and waning OF the light, the inlen-
sity of the glow, aud the soft heeting OF Iiv-
ing brilliancy into the mass OF shimmery
whiteness of the background The radiant
stars glistened here aud there; the deep
vault of the sky was like dome spread out
to receive the shifting, g3istening, ever
etulgeDce; earth lay dark and
somber, "a if listening for music that did
not come, and the polished bosom of the
reflected the dartings and quiy-
erings of the strange bnt beautiful guests that
were peopling the vastness of space. All
the change, the cleaning, the glow Of vivid
light, the flushing hue as Of maiden's blush,
deepening into roseate glow whose tinge Of
FIRE was not without CLEAN that looked al
most frowniDg and threatening-all was i'm
in the solemn silence Of the night, as
though all things terrestrial and celestial felt
a thrill of awe in presence of the sublime
spectacle that was filling The northern sky
with wonders, aud that made the vast con-
cavity of the spangled sky the stage on which
10 perform a drama so wondrouz and sub.
I