The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1898-01-07
THE FALLING STARS.
MuRAT s+ALSTEAO RECALLS A GREAT
EVENT OF HIS BOYHOOD.

| of Squirrels Brains aad what Followed.
! | am of the few who can speak as eye
witnesses of the night of the falling
stars" Nov. l2-l3, 1888. Those who be-
held the wonders OF that time were dazed
| by the awful splendors and long spoke of
them as OF some majestic, supernatural
vision. My age was years and months
my point of observation valley In south
| western Ohio. One of the treasures of our
house was an astronomical atlas, with
| mysterious maps of the consultations, over
| which my parents pondered, and the
| strange animals drawn among the stars
| were figures the more incomprehensible
the more they were explained My parents
we're much given TO studying the clouds by
lay and the stars by night and one of my
earliest rccollections Is that they would
call each Others attention to celestial phe-
| nomena, so that / was something of
star gazer" myself and knew when a
4-year-old about Jobs coffin and Orions
belt, the seven stars, the dipper, the north
| star and the star OF the morning and even
| ing.
My father the day before the memorable
! night had killed mess Of young SPUR
rels, " and, out of Difference to NE, had not
shot them as marksma should-through
|
rels' brains My passion for this dainty
dish was INDUCED at supper, and during
the night l disturbed the house shouting
for alienation of sharp palms. resulting
from too much brains-in my inexpcri-
enced stomach. My mother, aroused, saw
a strange light glaring at the windows,
and, 10, it was evident enough the uni
verse was afire! My father seldom allowed
anything TO astonish him, but that did If
| he had not seen it. he would nos have be-
lieved it, and yet he did not think the last
| hours of the globe we inhabit had come
and "the judgment was at hand.
The hour was after midnight. and how
long the stars had been falling could not
be ascertaired. II was very good of my
parents TO think ii worth while TO have me
take part rs a Waterman of the tremendous
illumination just to see whether | could
remember it as long as lived. have go
far, clearly, rs If it had happened few
days ago. and it is "a years My face was
washed TO clear my eyes from tears, per.
haps, and, wrapped in blanket. was
carried into the yard on the north side Of
the house. The view TO the north was
mcwhat INSTRUCTED by wild cherry tree.
Eastward was a low hill covered with
hickory, maple. walnut and sassafras trees.
and that was where the morning star peep
ed through the lofty fringe OF naked
boughs and trunks of the trees in the win
ter.
Special attention was given TO pointing
things out for me to fix i'm my memory,
and the amazing scene Is before me now.
though that was long before photography.
/ do not recollect that / looked westward
at all. Observation Of the east fascinat /
me. and do not think turned my face
in any other direction. There were innu
merable lines of light, drawn ms If by in
visible pencils with points of fire. strange
ly straight lines sweeping from near the
zenith to the horizon. My clear impression
Is there were no cross lines; that there
seemed to be monstrous stream of fiery
hair, vivid blending of sun and moon
light, pouring from stupendous, exhaust
less urn, some of the bright lines fading as
they swept lar down, fainting into the Sc
rene depths of the sky. There was Ger
tain majestic serenity about the exalted
conhagration. My parents were not
alarmed or greatly agitated, but enjoying
every moment / recall their low tones
and some of their ordinations of surprise
and admiration. All the boys and girls OF
the house were called, and they wanted &c
know whether it was really the stars that
were falling, and my father treasured
them by the rather unsatisfactory state
ment: mo. It's nothing but meteors. '
How 1t happened there was such food OF
them was matter not deeply gone into
The idea that comet had exploded and
our world was whirling through the dust
left floating in the abyss OF space was not
at once evolved, and il was some time be
fore our weekly papers mentioned that
there had been other startling showers OF
meteors; that this thing happened several
times and might and probably would
again.
The silence that attended the dazzling
display, the apparent flight of all the stars
from their courses, the mighty movement,
inexpensive save in the swift darting OF
celestial arrows that flashed into space and
made no sound, most impressed the be-
holders, and was always mentioned as
something mystical--an apparition OF
glory inconceivable. 1t was insubstantial
as the northern lights, and yet what more
could happen after one had seen the vault
Of heaven incandescent, with a thousand
streams of pale lightning all still as the
frost that glistcned on the grass. The
dome of the edifce In which the world is
as toy was the fountain from which sped
sheaves of long drawn shafts of light, ms
If some sudden volcano in the blue had
sent forth n radiant array of spectral spears,
putting out the stars The commotion
among the people in some country neigh
borhoods YVES as If warning had been given
that the day of burning worlds was at
hand.
1t was n relief to the watchers-my eyes
were soon weary Of the fireworks, and so
have only hearsay for it-when the first
cold white. then rosy, light Of morning
came, and IL was seen the hills had not
skipped, and that the brooks babbled on
In their accustomed way, and the chickens
that had cackled and crowed and given
signs of apprehension on their roosts, come
down and found tho earth as they had left
II the evening before, and the farmers set
forth rs usual to husk corn In the fields.
When the evening shades fell once more,
the veil of the metcors had vanished, rnd
there were gladncss and gratitude that the
majestical overhanging armament was
still there, fretted with the golden fires Of
the familiar stars.-Murat Halstead In
Cincinnati Commercial Tribune.