Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1886-09-23
HIGGINS, AWFUL Prediction
A Terrible Earthquake 20 shake th
southern states On Scpte niber 20sh

A TcrrtbIo Earthquake 20 shake the
southern states ON September 20sh.
| Special tn the New York Herald.
OTTAWA, ONT, Sept. 20.-Professor Il.
L Stone Virgins, of the meteorological
4 bureau, says that the goth instant will
1 witness one of the most terrific subter-
| ranean upheavals ever known on this con-
| tinent. Inasmuch Rs DIR. Virgins fore
| told the Charleston earthquake his pre-
| diction is regarded rs worthy of weight.
Being seen by reporter this evening he
| said:
at ia certain that an earthquake will
| visit the Southern States on the 29th of
this month. The disturbance will cross
the Atlantic and will in all probability
affect Southern Europe. South America
will be exceedingly liable to be affected
and tho upheaval will bo severe one.
There is no danger from earthquakes in
America until tho Goth inst, and even
then the earthquake force will move
from east to west ON o parallel few de-
grees south of Charleston. II Charleston
is visited this time it oaii only be OH that
day."
Being asked as to the parallel of lAti-
tude on which the disturbance would take
place, DIR. Virgins replied that the
activity would be confined to the thir-
tenth parallel of latitude, and would ex-
tend from ocean to ocean. The shocks
would also affect San Francisco and the
Pacific slope. North of parallel 30 the
disturbance will be meteorological, md
will consist of terrific storm--in fact, Il
vast hurricane. This will he especially
severe in the Gulf of at. Lawrence and
the eastern provinces. If any small craft,
such as fishing boats, were caught they
would hardly escape, but such a warning
had been given that il was not probable
that any would be ont. The storm
would be preceded in Ontario, Quebec,
the maritime provinces and New
England by strong northwest winds
on the Goth and 9th inst. The
2Sth would probably be fine-the lull
that precedes the storm The disturb
hance throughout will be terrific, and
cannot fail to cause widespread deyasta
ton. The force would be far greater
than that which caused the recent dis
turbanee 30 disastrous to Charleston city,
and the country would be alike affected.
The destruction to property wonli be
something terrible, Jacksonville, Fla;
Macon and Atlanta, Ga; Mobile, Ala
New Orleans, La; Baton Rouge, Miss;
Houston, San Antonio and Galveston,
Texas, would in all human probability be-
more or less damaged. He predicted
that New Orleans, Macon and Mobile
would be ruined, as the cities were right
in the path of the subterranean and met
geological phenomena.
When Professor Virgins was asked to
what cause he attributed this terrible
submarine upheayal he replied that il
was produced by shifting of the eartss
centre of gravity, and that this displace-
ment would be brought about by con-
| junction of Jupiter, Saturn, Mars and our
two satellites, one boing the visible and
the other the invisible moon. The latter
is discovery of DIR. Virgins. He did
not agree with the opinion enunoiated by
Sir William Dawson at the recent meeting
of the British Association, at Birmingham,
that the cause was to be attributed 20 a
contraction of that part of the narth's sur
face which forms the bell of the Atlantic.
There would be no earthquake in Canada,
but there would DO probably a tremor in
the province Of Quebec. The disturbance
would not commence anywhere until 2
O'Clock in the afternoon. There might be
tremors up to midnight, caused by the
| Hubsidence of tho earth's crust after the
great shock had taken place DIR. Wig
| gins expressed himself rs not nj all sur
prised if ON that day several new volca-
noes should burst out in Central America
and South America.
Walter III. Smith, president of the Astro
Meteorological Association for Canada
agrees with Virgins In substance. He
| saya the shock will be ushered in with q