Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1886-10-02

TALKING OF PARTICULARS.
Convulaive Movement Passing
Around the World.
LIEUT.. fowKLL's coNcLusroNs - vAprous
CAUSES OF Observation-Disclosures OF
srEAN-HoLLows IN TIKI EARrH1 CREST
-rHE 1NFLUENcE OF sun AND NOON.
Lieut. J. W. Powell, OF the sienai corps. when
asked BY STAR reporter his reasons for pre-
dieting that the first earthquake at Charleston
would DO followed by shocks for some time aud
also questioned on the subject OF eartho uakes
in general, said: "The earth's crust is now
thicker and stronger than ever before, and itx
great ribs OF granite and solid rock are now
more drm and rigid than In any previous
period. On the other hand, It ID known
that movements OF elevation, along with
local depressions. are in progress in the
OF new sediment is being deposited along the
borders of the Atlantic. specially on it's vest
nected with the earthq uake shocks and slight
movements which have occurred in North
America. It Is possible that this slow secular
movement may go on unfnterruptedly until
considerable change has been produced: but II
is quite as likely that 1t may be retarded or re-
yepsed II also Is possible on the other hand,
may be q new settlement of the ocean within.
accompanied by folding OF the crust espe.
possibly with renewed volcanic activity on its
eastern margin. In either case q long time.
relative TO our limited human chronology. may
intervene before q recurrence Of any marked
change.
THE EARrH's INTERIOR
"A most important question underlying ali
chronological inquiries is whether the interior
of our globe is molten mass Until COM
parativsly recent times physicists have
almost unanimously agreed that the pro-
cess OF solidifcation began by radiation, from
ff,u nf h0 hi sps.a
atmosphere. and that, particles near the center
continued hot and In nuid state. If the
observations Of the Increase Of heat below the
follows that granite rocks, lying thirty miles
under our feet, are In y state OF fusion.
In regard to the cause of earthquakes I would
say that among the ingenious theories devised
to explain seismic disturbances 10 that OF the
attractive influences of
THE MOON AND SUN.
hold the view that earthquakes, as felt at
certain seasons of the year. are possibly due to
the sun and moons producing a tide In the
interior OF the globe, aud that this tide press
ing against the solid crust causes fracture It
Is very interesting to notice that, at the
time OF the very severe shock at Charles
The moon was In its perigee ut , a. m, August
81; new moon Il: a. m. Tue same day, coming
on the direct line with the sun. Extremely
high tides occurred, therefore, for several da vs.
Inc moons upper transit At Charles ION &C.
Cured at ~ minutes past 2 p. H., August 81.
The high tide following the higher OF the two
just 20 minutes before the shock occurred. The
geOiogists assign an important part to steam,
~ !, the production of volcanic erup,ions. and
II is highly possible that most earthQ uakes
have been caused by the penrtration of water
into the super heated depths. The lorna
s% Other sss. haSax of prodssoa:
pressure ana explosive power in the
peni-np regions below, certainly is adequate to
account for seismic phenonena nn q very ex-
tensive scale. The great erup:ions in Japan, In
1883, show eonciuslveiy the TACT that volcanic
Iurhaces were raging below.
HoLLows In THE EARrHs CRUST
"As the formation of deep hoIlows in the sub
crust Of the earth would naturally weaken the
support OF the over-srus, IL is evident that
when the underlying rocks are soluble by
or degradation, ca rthquakes may occur,
leaving large places N the earth, AID this
mag be given as powerful cause or seismic
COMMISSIONS, AS the excaVated area deep
under ground would fall In.
Now, there are several theories connected
with earthquakes. their origin, etc. Why the
earthquake period has been confined 10 the
Atlantic coast for 50 long time Is, in my
opinion, due to the fact that the earth is con-
stahtly shrinking. l; we take for example, the
earthquakes that occurred In Japan and In the
Naie Of Cashmere Years ago, IL eau be easily
seen that at !uat time they were confined To ine
coast OF EASTERN Asia. subsequently we hear
OF an earthquake period on lnp Pacific ct,s.st
aud after That in the valley OF the Mississippi
earthquake shocks We're reported, and here
lately the pul>atious have been felt on tue At
ldntic coast. Ia lew months, or possibly next
year. am satisfied that they will he lett on the
WEST COAST OF EUROPE.
Regarding the interior OF The earth, ply
sicists have different theories. We all know
that the Interior OF the earth is a molten mass
.. matter, and that the gasses generated pro-
ouce the earthquake shock Now, when these
gasses receive sufficient force or pressure to
explode, i! there is escape Tor them through
volcanoes, they make teir presence known BY
whit Is ca..ed earth-t hrles, waving 81 tue
earth. Not being able 10 escape they pass on
10 some portion of the earth's surface where
the crust Is shallow; there they make their
presence known. We know that rom the Az
paiacnian Tnnge to the coast the Crust OF tho
earth is rather thin; therefore, these great
waves had pr0bahty started at some dis
lahce in TIE west las shown by the sud-
den ACTIVITY OF the geyser In the Yellow
until they reached the thin crust BORDERING ON
the Atlantic.
THE EARTHoUAKE SHOCKS,
as predicted, have continued At Charleston
and In that vicinity for nearly q month. By
the observations that have been made through.
out the world 1t has bseu discovered that tue
molten mass in tie interior uf the earth has a
temperature which il hardly " he conceived Of
bodies and ms IL may increase (the cause Tor
which no one can know, porsons OF the upper
crust may melt, aud, Consequently, the surface
OF The earth at That part may xink.
II you will look into The mean tide level at
Japan after the great earthquake there also
that of the Pacific coast after the severai EARTH
QuaseS they lad there, II will be easy to de-
MOnstrate The fact that there Is gradual
shrinking Of the earlh's surface. Trianxuia-
ti"ns snade by the coast and geodetic survey
are not, aud never can be, accurate, owing to
the disturbances"
Alaskan Boundary Questions.
NEW SuRJECT Of DIFFERENCE WITH CANADA
LIKELY TO ARISE.
A telegram to the New York Herald from t1t-
tawa Ont SeDtamber 3(ltI SAYS. II il mt i'm,