The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1894-04-18
THE WORLDS END.
DIRECTOR OF THE VIENNA oBSERv-
ATORI DOES NOT BELIEVE IN IT.
Netcors More DnuEcrouS-The Comet
OF 1866 May Get Into DihHcuIty Itself
II IL Comes Too Ncah-Some Comet
AIRY CatastrOprcs.

The Vienna correspondent Of the
y. Y. Herald says: Professor Falb,
the famous astronomer and pre-
dictor of earthquakes, has caused
terrible amount of uneasiness
and excitement hereabouts by his last
predictions of critical days" for 1894
that is to say. days when violent storms
ard other serious forms of atmospheric
or terrestrial disturbances may be ex-
pected. The critical days given by Prof
Falb for 1894 are stated in the order Of
maximum disturbance as follows: Aug.
80. Sept. %. Feb. 20, March p, Aug. l.
April 6. Jan. 2l May >. and Oct 2S. The
the most serious disturbance may be
looked for on Aug. 30 and the slightest
on Oct %. But the most serious dis
turbance-or rather. according to Prof.
Falb 'calamity'-will be some six years
hence, when the earth viii come into
collision with the comet, which was first
discovered in 1866. and which has been
moving about in space ever since in an
uncertain way. DR. Falb has calculated
that this comet will collide with the
earth on or about Nov. 13. 1899.
Prof Fab has been rOundly abused
by the Austrian papers for making this
prediction. Unfortunately Prof Falbs
prophecies have habit of turning out
10 be astOnishingly correct. that is To
say. his critical days" have had disas-
trous records from seismic commissions
in various parts of the world
An Ocean of Molten Fire.
The professors theory is that the in
terror of the earth is vast ocean of
molten fire. which. like the sea. is sub
ject to the influence OF the moon. and
which rises TO dangerous storms on the
conjunction of certain planetary in
huences. causing earthquakes and other
forms of terrestrial disturbances.
The Vienna journals have not much
to say of the Fabian critical days.
These generally pass over without
touching central Europe, while for the
southern portion of the continent
NesuViuS and Etna form the great
escape valves lessening the danger from
the seismic commissions though not eX-
Guiding terrible disasters. But the pre-
diction of the dangerous collision be-
tween the comet and the earth will have
the direst consequences among the gen
eral peasant population OF Austria and
Italy. not the least of which will be the
attempt to beat the lotteries by play
ing numbers based on Prof. Fables
prophecy.
NJ. Camille Flammarion i'm his Won
derful book la Fin du Monde" just
published in Paris, devotes, il will be re-
membered. A long chapter to the fearful
scares that have been caused in the past
by predictions relating TO the end Of the
world.
Prof. Weiss POOh-POOhs 1t.
Prof. Weiss. the director Of the Vienna
observatory at Waehring. has been in
tervicwed by a correspondent of the
Deutsche Zeitung in relation to the Falb
predictions. to the effect that the COLI
sion between the comet of 1866 and
mother earth will take place between
and o'clock on the morning of Nov. Is.
1899, when the destruction of the world
will result adding the prOvisO, however,
that in case the collision is avoided, the
inhabitants of the earth will have the
opportunity Of witnessing such shower
of falling stars as never before
THAT which is correct in this predic-
ton says Prof Weiss, lis the shower
of meteors which will be observed in the
period between Nov IA and 16 1899. But
such meteoric showers are not new.
They have been observed every thirty
three years. and they will do no injury
to the world at all.
The comet to which Prof Falb refers
will have nothing 10 do with the mete-
oric showers. 1t is a telescope comet,
and was discovered in 1866. 1t is an
insignificant comet that has got separ-
ated from the parent comet. is erratic in
its flight and we have not yet been able
to place its precise course. 1t was dis
covered in 1866. about eleven months be-
fore the last shower Of meteorS was OBJ
served. We cannot predict in what year.
TO say nothing of the day or the hour
when il will return Probably, however
u Mill = he h in aa
1899. 1t IS also possible that this may
occur a year earlier or year later Ger
tainly Falb is not able at the present
time to predict the date with any de-
gree of accuracy.
Not Impossible But Improbable.
rs it possible that tbs comet will col
Tide with the earth?''
1T is not impossible, but in the highest
degree improbable. Many accidental
phenomena must occur to bring about
such a collision The last time the comet
neared the sun it approached the earth
to about the tenth part of the distance
of the sun to the earth. that is 10 say
about fifteen million kilometres. 1t is
not probable that it will get any nearer
to the earth on its next visit. In fact
it is probable that its distance from
the earth will be greater in 1899 than it
was i'm 1866"
can the approach of the comet exert
such an influence as to cause disastrous
earthquakes"
mo. 1t has been proven that the
moon eXerts an influence upon the earth,
but only to a slight degree. The natural
phenomena connected with our globe are
regulated exclusively by the sun. Every
day there are earthquakes somewhere in
the world and as Falb does not give
the place of his commissions, his pre-
.fsa1 cir
How Collision Might Occur.
But since you allow the possibility Of
a collision between the comet and the
earth at some time, what results would
follOw?"
1.-THE 1866 comet is an insignificant
affair, and if the collision were to take
place 1t might happen in two ways. IF
only the gaseous mass of the comet
came into collision with the earth there
would be no catastrophe. But if the
kernel of the comet, firm, glowing
mass, should strike the earth directly
then, in consideration of the fact that
the elliptical courses of the comet and
the earth are directly opposed and their
velocity is about seventy-five kilometers
per second, a catastrophe would result,
the extent of which we can most as
suredly not define. But as L have said.
entirely excluded. And ] repeat that. ac-
cording to all human calculations. the
collision will not take place"
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