St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1884-04-05
Terrific Natural Forces.

disturbances Cyclones, tOrnadOeS
heavy and long-continued rains, fol
lowed by terrible floods, hail-storms
unreasonable and severe cold and frosts
have thus far strewn the path of 1882
and if all predictions turn out to be cor
rect, the next two months will give
additional variety to the meteorological
programme in the shape of terrific
thunder and lightning showers. Wha
is the matter with the powers of the
air? While no new forces seem to be
apparent in this general weather melee
it is yet quite evident there is an I'm,
usual combination of forces at work
somewhere. The kaleidoscope OF
Nature is revolving rapidly, and sending
her hidden machinery into new po-
sitions and displaying constantly a
succession of fresh and varying phe-
| nOmena.
But high scientific authority declares
that this world, like huge bead, is
| strung upon thread of law, and if this
be so, We must not suspect any element
of chance or capricious uncertainty in
the regular and orderly movements of
natural forces. Vennor has recently
given out that he bases his observations
and guesses in part on the periodical re-
currence of certain courses or demon
STATIONS of atmospheric phenomena;
that about once in so often peculiar
seasons appear, and unusual occur
rences take place in earth and sea and
sky, and that by a careful study of the
past he is able to predict to some ex-
tent the future. 1t would thus seem
that in the original constitution or ar
rangement of things, uniformity and
regularity were to be the prevailing
rules of all natural movements and
sequences, and in addition to this the
law of variation was also TO come in at
stated intervals and modify or inter-
rupt the otherwise monotonous process
sion of events. just as in a skillfullY
composed piece of music, there is the
central theme of melody running
through the whole, and then, harmoni-
ously mingling with it, an almost in
finite number Of Emergencies and varia-
tions, so in the grand plan of the world,
as revealed in the operations of the ma
terial universe, there is main chord
of regularity and uniformity visible,
and, coupled with these, any number of
variable and extraordinary divergen-
cies from the usual course.
Many years ago, among the popular
and instructive lectures of the Rev. t.
Starr King-Who, as a far-seeing and
subtle thinker, has never had an equal
in this countTy-was one entitled "Ihe
Laws of Disorder" in which he demon
strated with rare beauty and force the
fact that the most uncertain and appar-
emily capricious of all earthly events
and movements were under the control
of fixed and Interchangeable laws. In
like manner the results of the patient
and protracted studies of all modern
scientific naturalists, like Darwin and
Spencer, go to prove that the idea of
unity and uniformity, coupled with the
power of variations, forms one portion
of the ground-plan of the world. This
is seen alike in the perpetuation of spe- |
cies or types of an mails and vegetable |
life, in the movements of history and |
the unfolding of civilization, in the re-
of natural phenomena and in |
the rolling of tire worlds through the in
finite spaces.
1t can thus be seen at a g'anee how
erroneous are the views of those who /
would attribute all the extraord nary oc-
currences of life to the direct inte posi- /
ton OF an unseen and divine hand. rne I
of Creator and Ruler OF |
this and other worlds sitting on d hid +
den throne and hurting thunderbolts at
his own will and pleasure far AMI near,
IS Jove was supposed to do from the
.op of Mount Olympus, may be Grecian
and classic, but in the light of ascer-
5ained scientific facts and laws, it can
hardly be called either Christian or civ
lized.
Another thought in connection with
,he working of these terrific natural
:orces is, that any new light which can
De thrown upon the times and seasons
which they observe. or the methods and
avs which they follow, would be a
sreat public benefaction. And to this
End the recent efforts of General Hazen
md the Signal Service corps to observe
more accurately the origin and courses
# tornadoes in the various portions of |
his country are worthy of all common
lation. 1t is not much, at the best,
which can be learned or communicated |
concerning these terrific aerial vista
ions, but all that can be known should
,e known and distributed broadcast
the sections of country most
liable to suffer from their des6lating |
avaoes. The recent exhibitions of ey- |
Ionic power in Iowa and elsewhere |
make this subject most pertinent one
t the present time, and call for renewed |
ctivity in the direction which the |
signal Corps has so happily and oppor-
unely marked out. Chicago Journal.
The fact that people who .'Iive in