The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1886-12-02

so AAAO ~
They Bury Houses and People-Famous
Swiss slip.
Scarcely less alarming than the fall
of an avalanche, and sometimes,
indeed, far more destructive, are those
sudden descents of earth and other ma
terials commonly known as land-slips.
The cause of these remarkable calami-
ties-for such they commonly are-may
he briefly described. The strata of a
mountain or lesser elevation are often
found to deviate considerably from a
horizontal position; and if shale or any
other substance pervious to water forms
the lowest stratum, a land-slip may
take place. For instance, if there be
an abundance of rain or melted snow,
which percolates down so as to soften
the lower stratum, the upper strata are
liable to be loosened, and, in process of
time, to slide away. Such was the case
in Shropshire towards the close of last
century, as related by Mr.. Fletcher, of
Madeley. This took place at a spot on
the Severn between the Grove and the
Birches. stThe first thing that struck
me-" says Mr.. Fletcher, "was the de-
struction of the little bridge that sepa-
rated the parish of Madeley from that of
Buildwas, and the total disappearing of
the turnpike road to Buildwas bridge.
instead of which, nothing presented
itself to my view but a confused heap of
bushes and huge clods of earth, tumbled
one over another. The river also wore
a diffent aspect; it was shallow, noisy,
~boisterous, and came down from a DIFF
ferent point Following the track made
by . great number of spectators who
came from the neighboring parishes, I
climbed over the ruins and came to a
field well grown with ryegrass, where
the ground was greatly cracked in sew
eral places, and where large turfs-
some entirely, others half-turned Up
exhibited the appearance of straight or
crooked burrows, as though imperfectly
formed by a plow drawn at q venture.
Getting from that field over the hedge
into a part of the road which sunk in
another, concave in a third, hanging on
one side in q fourth, and contracted as
If some uncommon force had pressed
the two hedges together. But the
higher part of it surprised me most, and
brought directly to remembrance those
places of Mount Vesuvius where the
solid stony lava had been strongly
marked by repeated earthquakes; for
the hard beaten gravel which formed
the surface of the road was broken every
way into huge masses, partly detached
from each other, with deep apertures
between them, exactly like the shat
tered lava. This striking likeness of
circumstances made me conclude that
the similar effect might proceed from
the same cause, namely, a strong con-
vulsion on the surface. if not in the
bowels, of the earth.a
This conjecture was not confirmed by
facts and circumstances related by 9TH
ers; indeed, the latter part of his de-
scription proves, almost beyond ques-
ton, that the various results described
were cccasioned by a landslip, and not
by a shock of an earthquake, of which
no one heard any thing.
He continues: ''Going a little further
toward Buildwas, l found that the road
was again totally lost for a considerable
space, having been overturned, alb
sorbed, or tumbled, with the hedges
that bounded it, to a considerable dis
tance towards the river. This part of
the desolation appeared then to me in
expressibly dreadful. Between a shat
tered field and the river there was that
morning a bank, on which, Besides a
great deal of underwood, grew twenty
five large oaks. This wood shot with
such violence into the Severn before it,
that it forced the water in great vol
umes a considerable height. like a
mighty fountain, and gave the over
flowing river a retrograde motion. This
is not the only accident which happened
to the Severn, for, hear the Grove, the
channel. which was chiefly of a soft
blue rock, burst in ten thousand pieces,
and rose perpendicularly about ten
yards, hcaying up the immense guam
tity of water and the shoal of fishes
that were therein"
Marcley hill is near the confluence of
the Lug and Wye, about six miles east
of Hereford. In the year 1895, it was,
says Mr.. Brown, the editor of Whites
Sef6orns. 'safter roaring and shaking in
q terrible manner for three days to-
gether, about six o'clock on Sunday
morning put in motion, and continued
moving for eight hours, in which time
~ III duCC apWatoo Ia WV IA ~
feet from its first position, and mounted
~seventy-two feet higher than it was be.
fore. In the place where it set out, il
left a gap four hundred feet long, and
three hundred and twenty broad. ant
in its progress it overthrow o chapel, to
gethcr with trees and houses that stood
in lis way"
That interesting naturalist, Mr. White
of Selborne, gives at length, in N o.
his letters to Honorable DANES Barring.
ton, an account of an extraordinary
landslip in his own neighborhood, at {
date corresponding with that of the
landslip in Shropshire. He says: 1.-THE
months Of January and February, IVA
were remarkable for great melting
snow and vast gluts of rain, so that, by
the end of the latter month, the lanl
springs, or lerants eastern; so called,
suppose, because of the prevalence O
easterly winds at this season,) began t.
prevail, and to be near as high as in tn,
memorable winter of 1854. The begin
ming of March also went on in tn,
same tenor, when in the night between
the 9th and 9th of that month,
considerable part of the great wood,
hanger "a local term for an overhang
ing woody cliff at Hawkley was tori
from its place and fell down. leaving
HIGH freestone cliff naked and bare, ant
resembling the steep side of a chalk-pit
II appears that this huge fragment, be
ing perhaps Slapped and undermined b.
waters, foundered and was engulfed
going down in o perpendicular direc
ion: for a gate which stood in the fielt
ON the top Of the hill, after sinking witt
its posts for thirty or forty feet, re
NAMED in so true and upright a posi-
ton as 90 open and shut with great ex
act6oss, Just as in its first situation
Several oaks also are stu standing