Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1886-09-06
6l)e ca,lfa8ter 1ntelligeilfer
EAHcAsrxh sETTEMBER 8, lsse.
Earthouske speculat,ons.


The earthquake Is the most interesting
question of the day and we all would like to
know great deal more about it than we
Do. Scientists cannot satisfy our greed,
for they know but little themselves that is
certain. They speculate, and when there
= no attainable fact to distrust their spec
u1etion, they get credit for knowing where
Z thSy are but guessing; and guessing badly,
TOO, ~ we often find when Unexpectedly
facts turns up to confound them. And
there are no scientists more often or readily
tripped up than biologists, since there are
none who are more ready to form conclu-
Bions upon the insufficient data, which so
frequently content them. They cannot see
into the bowels of the earth and it is only
when practical men, in search of the dol
lars, 60 down deep into the earth for it,
that its secrets are exposed and so often
TO the confounding of the theorist. The
oil and gas product Of Pennsylvania las
been particularly trying to geological sci
ence, and it is not yet that it has drawn it
, satisfactory explanation of cause and
satisfactory prophecy as to location, extent
and durability. Generally we are told with
confidence that the oil and gas supply is
bound to fail within generation at
farthest; but it does not pay to be bull on
the prophecy, since daily the yield becomes
larger and the price falls lower.
Probably we know as much about the
earthquake as science will ever tell us,
without some new discovery of practical
men. Perchance if these disturbances
come often and severely, our energy and
ingenuity will suffice to find some remedy
or alleviation that has not been discov-
cred among the barbarous and stupid
people that heretofore have been the
earthquakes usual victims. We will hard
" stand the overthrowing of our cities
without determined effort to find out
how this thing comes and how it is to be
made to go. We have had genius-Cap-
tain Ward, was it not who maintained
thai there was hole through the world
from pole to pole and if there is not, We
may need to make one. We have done
great things in the canal digging line, and
are attempting greater and who can say
that hole down to the earth's internal
fire, to be safety valve to it, is beyond
our power I Probably it would be an inef-
fective remedy for the trouble but if not
we are not without confidence that the
trick would be done.
They tell us that the earth was once a
molten sun, whose crust has cooled in the
course of an imaginable number of years,
so as to be inhabitable and that the COOL
ing process created our rocks and hills and
Is still going on down towards the earth's
centre, which is yet molten. The vol
xcssNQee are vents for these fires, and when
they are active, earthquakes are not. The
naturally suggested remedy for the earth
quake would therefore be to keep the vol
cano moving. But on the other hand, if
the earth is made to yomit forth constant
ly her contents will not its equilib-
rum be affected and where shall we
put the lava in the countless coming ages
II we let the future take care of itself, we
may perhaps control the present; and that
is all that man cares for, the generations to
come taking little of his thought. 1t
Is an obvious reflection however, that if the
oarth's centre is molten and its crust filled
with gas and fluids that are let out freely
upon its surface, there is going to be in the
course of years such danger in the earth's
economy as will play hob with it after
some fashion that we will not be there to
see.